Feelings of a Soul
by Panther07
Summary: *Sequel to Colors of Rainbow: READ IT FIRST!* Aubrey Potter is an ordinary witch. Her parents keep no secrets from her. She'll always be friends with Kevin, Jessica, and Angel. Or so she thinks...
1. Joy

AN: This is set eleven years after 'Colors of a Rainbow'. Harry, Ginny, Ron, Hermione, Draco, Lavender, Lee and Cho have not yet told their children of the prophecy, fearing that they will make their decision too soon. So, without further ado, here is 'Feelings of a Soul.'  
  
Disclaimer: I DO NOT own Harry Potter. I DO own Aubrey Potter, Kevin Malfoy, Angel Jordan and Jessica Weasley, along with Snape's children.  
  
  
  
Aubrette Judith Potter (or Aubrey as most called her) lay down upon the small raft she had pushed into the river.  
  
She breathed in the warm summer air and let out a contented sigh.  
  
Sometimes she just had to get away…Away from the racket and din of her family and friends.  
  
Not that she didn't love them, but with six younger siblings and another on the way, who could blame her?  
  
Aubrey rolled over and started reading the muggle book she had gotten before coming to stay at the Burrow.  
  
She was just getting into it when a flutter of wings overhead distracted her.  
  
Aubrey looked up and saw an official looking gray barn owl flying her way.  
  
Her heart leapt with excitement when she saw the envelope clutched in its claws.  
  
As soon as the owl landed on the raft, she grabbed the letter.  
  
With a hoot of annoyance the owl ruffled its feathers and flew off.  
  
Aubrey looked down at the thick parchment cover.  
  
In emerald green ink it was addressed to 'Ms. A. Potter, Raft on the Burrow Stream, The Burrow.'  
  
Ripping it open Aubrey scanned the letter and let out a whoop of joy.  
  
She quickly paddled to shore and pulled the raft up onto the bank.  
  
After making sure it was secure she took off through the small woods and field, dodging garden gnomes and nearly running over her little cousin Joey, Ron's three year old son.  
  
Throwing open the door to the Burrow Aubrey raced in screaming "I got my letter! I got my letter!"  
  
There was the sound of stampeding feet and soon half the Burrow was standing in front of her.  
  
Ginny Weasley, Aubrey's mother, elbowed the way to the front of the crowd, giving her daughter a huge hug.  
  
"Oh, dear! You're the first one-"  
  
"MUM! DAD! I GOT MY HOGWARTS LETTER!"  
  
The front door flew open and Aubrey's cousin, Jessica Marcia Weasley, ran in, her face shining with utter joy and happiness.  
  
"So did I!" Aubrey screeched.  
  
The two girls hugged.  
  
Jessica and Aubrey were as close as can be.  
  
"Our letters came! We're going to Hogwarts!" Two boys rushed in, Kevin Giles Malfoy and Angelo Parker Jordan.  
  
Besides Jessica, Angel and Kevin were Aubrey's best friends.  
  
"Well, this calls for a celebration!" Ron Weasley, Aubrey's uncle and Jessica's father, bellowed.  
  
"I say we take the letter receivers out to eat! At the Leaky Cauldron! We can stay a few nights there and go shopping!" Lee Jordan, Angel's father, cried.  
  
"Well, normally I would say no but since they've gotten their letters…I don't know. What do you say, Harry?" Ginny asked her husband.  
  
"Of course! Come on kids, run up and pack some cloths for a couple nights! I'll even let us go on the Knight Bus!" The four friends raced upstairs.  
  
"Daddy? Can I go to Hogwarts too?" Sophia, Aubrey's five year old sister asked.  
  
"In a couple of years, pumpkin." Harry told her, smiling and ruffling the brunette's wild hair. 


	2. Delight

Disclaimer: I DO NOT own Harry Potter or any of his friends. I do, however, own Aubrey, Kevin, Jessica and Angel, along with their new friends, Midas and Justine Snape.  
  
  
  
After an extremely bumpy ride, the Weasley/Potter family along with the Malfoys (over time they had all excepted Draco), and the Jordans stumbled off the bus.  
  
"Well, why don't we go get us some rooms while you four have a look around?" Cho Jordan, Angel's mother suggested.  
  
After agreeing to meet in an hour and a half Jessica, Aubrey, Angel and Kevin raced off down the streets of Diagon Alley, screaming in delight.  
  
They quickly found Weasley Wizard Weazes, owned by Aubrey's uncles, Fred and George.  
  
"Uncle Fred! Uncle George! We got our letters!" Jessica cried, racing through the extremely successful joke shop and jumping up and down in front of George.  
  
George just chuckled and pulled out four bags of Canary Creams.  
  
"Here, take these and save them for Hogwarts. Slip them in Snape's food…That's something George and I never managed to do." Fred, George's twin, said, coming out from the back room.  
  
"Is Hogwarts any fun?" Angel asked.  
  
"Is Hogwarts fun? Is it fun? Of course it is!" George cried.  
  
Fred was about to say something more when the bell on the door of the shop jingled.  
  
"Customers. Listen, Fred and me have to go do something right quick. Will you help these ones?" George asked.  
  
"Sure, Uncle George." Jessica replied.  
  
"Thanks." George and Fred said in unison as they rushed of towards the back room.  
  
"Hello? Is anyone in here?" A male voice rang out through the shop.  
  
"Excuse me, I need some help! Is anyone here?" The voice asked again.  
  
"I'll handle this." Aubrey whispered, tiptoeing off in the direction of the voice.  
  
"Ah, it's no use Midas. They're not here."  
  
"But I really want to get something for the term! Hold on a second longer, Justine. I'll try one more time. Hello-Oh!"  
  
Aubrey had jumped out in front of a teenage boy and a girl who looked about a year or so older than her.  
  
Aubrey ran a hand through her auburn hair and gazed intently at the boy.  
  
"May I help you?" she asked.  
  
"Well…um…I…Well…what's your name?" The boy stuttered, blushing deeply.  
  
"Aubrey. What's yours?"  
  
"Midas. Yes, and, well…Um, this is my Justine, sister…I mean my sister, Midas…Oh! Gods!" Midas buried his face in his hands while the girl beside him sniggered.  
  
"What Midas meant to say was that I'm his little sister, Justine." The girl said.  
  
"Oh? Well, delighted to meet you both." Aubrey said, raising an eyebrow.  
  
If she didn't know better, she'd have thought Midas liked her.  
  
Actually, that wouldn't be all that bad…Midas was kind of cute.  
  
He was about five-foot-six and obviously still growing with neck-length black hair and deep ebony eyes eyes.  
  
His green robes showed arms that would one day be strong and a chest that would one day be firm and muscled.  
  
Midas finally regained his composure.  
  
"Yes…Um, well, I was wondering, do you have any Lizard Creams?"  
  
"Of course…Over there to the right." Aubrey said, pointing to the display.  
  
Midas nodded and scuffled over there.  
  
Justine, however, wanted to talk.  
  
"So, you look about eleven, get your letter yet?"  
  
"Just today."  
  
"Well, congratulations! We have a little sister, Whitney. She's starting Hogwarts too. You'd like her."  
  
Aubrey nodded politely, making a note to look out for this girl.  
  
Seeing that Midas was ready to buy, Aubrey helped him purchase the wacky inventions her uncles had thought up.  
  
"Well, um, bye! I…I…I guess we'll see you around!" Midas mumbled before stumbling out of the shop, Justine following at his heels.  
  
As soon as they were gone, Jessica appeared beside Aubrey, a funny look on her face.  
  
"I think he likes you!"  
  
Aubrey blushed as her cousin cackled in the background.  
  
"Yeah, right, look at me!" She cried, staring in a mirror.  
  
Aubrey hadn't looked in the mirror for a while so what she saw was surprising.  
  
Over the summer she had acquired a tan.  
  
Aubrey had no freckles and the tan didn't clash with her skin, to her delight.  
  
Her wavy, flame red hair fell down to her mid-back and covered her very slim shoulders like a swirl of water.  
  
She had even begun to get a nice shape!  
  
"You do look rather pretty…" Angel said, jumping out from behind a shelf.  
  
Aubrey blushed a deep red.  
  
"You're just saying that." She muttered, kicking at the ground.  
  
Angel shrugged and grinned.  
  
"So, who was that guy?" He asked.  
  
"Somebody named Midas…And his sister Justine. They have a little sister, Whitney, who's also starting Hogwarts.  
  
Angel was about to ask Aubrey about 'Whitney' when the door to the shop was throw open and Fred and George came in, hiding something behind their backs.  
  
"Where were you two?" Angel asked.  
  
Fred grinned mischievously.  
  
"Out and about, getting stuff." He told them.  
  
Jessica's face lit up.  
  
"Namely, getting stuff for the four of us."  
  
"You know us too well." George muttered, taking two long thin boxes out from behind his back.  
  
Fred produced two more.  
  
"What's in them?" Kevin asked, his periwinkle blue eyes shining with curiosity.  
  
Fred chuckled and handed the two boxes he was holding to Kevin and Angel.  
  
George handed the other two boxes to the girls.  
  
Without wasting any time, the four friends ripped the shiny wrapping paper off and tore the lids off.  
  
When they saw what was inside, they gasped.  
  
Four bracelets lay in the boxes, one for each of them.  
  
Each had two trinkets dangling from them, one of an animal and the other a small tag saying, "Amicus ceterum tempus?" Jessica read.  
  
"It means friends for the rest of time in Latin." George told them.  
  
"So that you'll always remember that you're friends and that you should always stay together." Fred added.  
  
For a moment Aubrey's uncles' eyes clouded over with a sad look…But it was only for a second.  
  
"You four run along…Tell your mums and dads that we'll pop over a bit later." George said, waving as they ran out the door and down the busy street of Diagon Alley. 


	3. Annoyance

Disclaimer: Now, if I owned Harry Potter, would I be here making up stories? No, I thought not.  
  
  
  
By the time the four friends got back to the Leaky Cauldron it was dinnertime.  
  
"Well, I was wondering when you four would show up." Draco said as they ran in and plopped into the four empty seats and began to dig into their dinners.  
  
"Yes. You missed Fred and George…Though they did mention you stopping by." Ginny told them.  
  
Kevin and Angel grunted in response while Aubrey and Jessica nodded politely.  
  
When dinner was done, Cho, Hermione, Ginny and Lavender saddled their eldest children with the responsibility (Kevin called it punishment) of taking their younger siblings to get some ice cream.  
  
"Ugh! I love my baby brothers and sisters…But ushering them to get ice cream? It's inhuman torture!" Angel moaned, grabbing Nanette, his five year old sister, away from a hag hobbling down the street.  
  
"Yeah…We look like weirdoes, herding twelve kids down the street…We're lucky that the other eight aren't old enough to go somewhere without our mothers." Kevin said in an annoyed tone.  
  
***  
  
Soon they reached an ice cream parlor, 'Sundaes Galore'.  
  
After taking twelve orders, plus herself, Jessica, Kevin and Angel, Aubrey told the boy what they wanted.  
  
"That'll be eight galleons and five knuts." He said.  
  
Aubrey nodded curtly and paid up.  
  
"Come on, kids, lets go eat over there." Aubrey said, pointing to some tables outside the shop.  
  
While keeping an eagle's eye on her siblings, Aubrey licked a Popsicle.  
  
"I can't wait until tomorrow! We'll get our first real wand!" Jessica said.  
  
Aubrey barely listened, though.  
  
Her mind was elsewhere…With a certain raven haired ebony eyed boy named Midas.  
  
No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't get him out of her head.  
  
***  
  
The next morning donned early and bright.  
  
Angel, Aubrey, Jessica and Kevin practically ran down the crowded streets and towards Madame Malkin's Robes for All Occasions.  
  
Today was the day when they'd get their Hogwarts supplies.  
  
In less than two weeks they'd be boarding the Hogwarts Express and heading towards Hogwarts.  
  
"You're here for Hogwarts?" Madame Malkin asked once they stepped in her shop.  
  
"Yes, ma'am." Jessica told her.  
  
"Well, go into the back. They'll fit you up there." Madame Malkin said, telling their mothers to sit down.  
  
***  
  
After getting fitted for six black robes each, all the books on their lists, cauldrons, potion ingredients they were left with one last item they needed: a wand.  
  
Aubrey opened the door to Ollivanders quietly, afraid that she would disturb the tomblike silence.  
  
Angel, Jessica, Kevin and she wandered down the aisles piled high with boxes of wands.  
  
"Can I help you?" A voice behind Aubrey made her jump up.  
  
She turned around to find an old man standing behind her and her friends.  
  
"Yes…We'd like to purchase some wands…We're starting Hogwarts." Kevin muttered.  
  
There was a strange and mysterious aura about the man, who must be Mr. Ollivander.  
  
"Ah, yes, I know who each of you are…The question is, though, do you each know who you are?" He smiled in a way that told them he knew something they didn't.  
  
"Um…Yeah…Well, can you help us?" Angel asked.  
  
Mr. Ollivander nodded curtly and pointed to Kevin.  
  
"You're the oldest, you first."  
  
Kevin nodded and stepped forward.  
  
After five different wands, Kevin was able to send red and gold sparks out of his wand (Mahogany and unicorn hair. Nine inches. Good for curses.)  
  
One after another, Aubrey watched her friends go.  
  
Jessica's wand was ebony and dragon heartstring. Ten and a half inches. Pliable. Good for charms.  
  
Angel's wand was holly and unicorn hair. Eleven inches. Also good for curses.  
  
Finally it was Aubrey's turn.  
  
Mr. Ollivander took a long look at her and, without measuring or even asking which hand was her wand hand disappeared into the back room.  
  
Within seconds his reappeared holding a long box.  
  
"I have a feeling that this will suit you." He told her, handing her the box.  
  
Aubrey wrinkled her nose and took the wand out, looking it up and down.  
  
"Willow and phoenix hair. Eleven and a half inches. Good for transfiguration and Defense Against the Dark Arts." Mr. Ollivander murmured, watching Aubrey take it out.  
  
As soon as the wand fell out of the box and into her hands, Aubrey had a vision, though it only lasted for a few seconds.  
  
Jessica, Kevin, Angel and her were standing together, and Aubrey felt that their bond was broken, and that one of them was her friend and that the other two were her enemies…  
  
"Just wave it around, Aubrey dear!" Her mother called out, bringing her back to reality.  
  
"Oh…Yeah, mum." Aubrey muttered, swishing the wand in a circle.  
  
A flash of red and gold sparks flew around and turned into a star.  
  
Ginny leapt up and hugged her daughter tightly.  
  
"My little witch!" She sobbed, squeezing Aubrey to the point where it was embarrassing.  
  
"Oy! Mum, get off!" Aubrey moaned, shoving her mother away and pretending to be upset.  
  
Ginny just smiled brightly and scampered off to buy the wand.  
  
"Alright, you three take your packages and go back to the Leaky Cauldron! We'll meet you in two hours at Eeylops Owl Emporium, to get you four owls! Think of it as a 'Good Luck!' gift!" Lavender told them, blinking as they disappeared at an unnaturally fast pace.  
  
***  
  
Angel, Aubrey, Jessica and Kevin strolled happily down Diagon Alley, talking about the hot topic of the day: What would Hogwarts be like?  
  
"I just want to be sorted into Gryffindor!" Angel told his three companions.  
  
"Yeah, Weasley's have been in Gryffindor for…like…ever since we started coming to Hogwarts!" Jessica cried.  
  
Kevin frowned a little.  
  
"Malfoy's have been in Slytherin since we started coming to Hogwarts, and mum's muggle born. I really hope the Sorting Hat put me in Gryffindor. I don't what I'd do if I wasn't."  
  
Aubrey patted Kevin's arm in a reassuring way.  
  
"Oh, I bet the Hat will see that you're just as brave as Gryffindors! Don't you worry!" She told him.  
  
Kevin smiled at warmly at Aubrey.  
  
"Thanks…Say! Angel! There's the candy shop! We need to replenish on our stock." He cried, pointing to 'Samson's Sweet Treats', the local sweets shop.  
  
Angel nodded and the two turned to the other half of their group.  
  
"You coming?" Kevin asked.  
  
"No, we want to go back to the Leaky Cauldron and freshen up." Jessica replied.  
  
Angel shrugged, "Well, we'll get you two something!" He told them, running after Kevin.  
  
Aubrey and Jessica watched them go, their noses wrinkled in annoyance.  
  
"I swear, all they do is eat! It's a wonder they aren't the size of a dragon!" Jessica muttered, shaking her head so that her golden brown locks tumbled around her shoulders.  
  
Aubrey nodded in agreement and the cousins started off, giggling about Ivan Grapsling, the cute new Beater for the Chudley Cannons.  
  
***  
  
When Aubrey opened the door to her room, she was greeted by a flying ball of fur, which attached it's claws to her dark blue robes.  
  
"Arg! Starlene! Get off, these are new robes!" Aubrey told the small, ginger colored kitten, which just happened to be the great-granddaughter of the late Crookshanks, Aunt Hermione's old cat (before she had gotten Sabel, Crookshanks daughter and Starlene's grandmother).  
  
Starlene meowed and leapt down, purring and rubbing up against her owner's legs.  
  
"Sorry, Star, but mama's got to go. I'll be back later with dinner, kay?" Aubrey asked as she changed into some warmer robes (colored a deep red).  
  
She sauntered over to the door and opened it, taking on last look in the mirror before she left.  
  
In that moment, Starlene (or Star as she was most often called) streaked out of the room and down the hallway.  
  
"STAR!" Aubrey cried, racing down the hall and after her beloved kitten.  
  
"What's up?" Jessica asked, stepping out of her room.  
  
"Come on, Star got out!" Aubrey cried, dragging her cousin down the hallway after her.  
  
The two girls raced downstairs just in time to see Star's white tipped tail disappear around the corner.  
  
They ran through the door and after the small cat, who was taking many sharp turns.  
  
Finally they came to a dark and dingy alley, not far from Gringotts.  
  
"Damn! That's Knocnkturn Alley!" Jessica cursed, watching Star prance down the Dark Arts street.  
  
"I don't care, I'm getting my Star back!" Aubrey told Jessica.  
  
"Well…We better be quick. You're dad ended up there once, remember the story?"  
  
Aubrey nodded and the cousins linked arms, set their jaws and walked bravely down Knockturn Alley.  
  
As they walked, the shops got larger and scarier looking.  
  
"St…St…Star?" Aubrey called meekly.  
  
"Is this what you're looking for?" The two girls whirled around and gasped.  
  
A group of about seven boys were crowded behind them, and their leader, the one who had spoken, had his wand pressed to a very scared looking Star's belly.  
  
"Give me my cat, you stupid git!" Aubrey cried, trying to grab Star.  
  
The boy just sneered.  
  
"No…I think this will make a lovely meal for my pet snake." He told Aubrey and Jessica.  
  
"You…You wouldn't!" Jessica asked, her tan skin turning pale.  
  
"Oh, but I would. Good day, girls." The boys turned to leave when-"Drop it, Macnair!"  
  
Aubrey recognized the voice before she saw the face.  
  
Midas, along with a girl about their age and Justine, immerged from the shadows.  
  
The boy's jaw dropped and his eyes widened with fear.  
  
"Er, I wasn't doing anything! I swear, Midas! I…I was just giving the girl her cat!" He stuttered, shoving Star into Aubrey's outstretched arms.  
  
Midas sneered.  
  
"Yes…Well, you best be off…You're snake's probably very hungry."  
  
The boy and his gang nodded and turned to leave.  
  
"Oh, and Macnair?"  
  
"Yes, Midas?"  
  
"Stay away from these two. If I catch you near them I swear you'll be sorry." Justine nodded, as if to clarify the threat.  
  
Macnair gulped and bolted down the street, his gang nipping at his heels.  
  
As soon as they had disappeared, Midas turned his gaze on Aubrey.  
  
"What are you doing down here? You could have been hurt!"  
  
"I'm sorry Midas, but my cat, Star, she got out of my room and we chased her. Thank you for helping, though. Star means a lot to me."  
  
Midas looked as if he was about to lay into them some more Justine stepped in front of him.  
  
"Don't be so harsh, Midas. They didn't know better." Justine said, smiling brightly at the Midas.  
  
Midas just snorted.  
  
"Well, I suppose we have to get you back to Diagon Alley safely. Come on, move it!" Midas said in an annoyed tone, walking briskly ahead of them.  
  
"Don't worry about him, he'll cool off." The girl who had reddish-gold hair told Aubrey.  
  
"Oh…Yeah." Aubrey muttered.  
  
"Judging by description, you must be Aubrey."  
  
"Yes…I bet you're Whitney."  
  
The girl nodded.  
  
"Well, here we are. Diagon Alley." Midas muttered as they stepped onto the bright street.  
  
"Well, see onboard the Hogwart's Express." Whitney called before following her brother and sister down the alley and out of sight.  
  
"I like her." Jessica said, watching them go.  
  
"Me too." Aubrey said, petting Star. 


	4. Cheery

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. They belong to J.K. Rowling.  
  
  
  
The nest few weeks passed quickly and before she knew it, Aubrey was packing up Star and her owl, Stormi (named for her gray feathers), and the rest of her things.  
  
The entire Weasley family showed up to see Angel, Aubrey, Jessica and Kevin off.  
  
"Write me, Kevvy!" Lavender screamed, blowing kisses at Kevin, who was sinking in his seat aboard the Hogwarts Express.  
  
"Gods, our mothers are so embarrassing!" Angel moaned as Cho screamed for him to change his underwear.  
  
"Send me a letter, Brey!" Krystal, Aubrey's eight-year-old sister yelled.  
  
"Will do, Krysta!" Aubrey yelled back.  
  
Before anyone could say anymore, the train started moving.  
  
Kevin shut the compartment's window and leaned back in his seat.  
  
"You know, our parents met here, on this train…And look at them now!" Angel exclaimed.  
  
Aubrey nodded.  
  
"Maybe we'll meet some new friends on the train."  
  
As if on cue, the door slid open and in stepped two boys and a girl.  
  
The boy on the right stuck out his hand to the four friends and grinned.  
  
"The names Leonard Bolewick, but everyone calls me Lenny. Mind if we sit with you?"  
  
"Sure." Aubrey said, smiling sweetly.  
  
Lenny sat down next to Jessica, nearest to the door.  
  
The girl slid in between Kevin and Angel and the boy on the left sat down next to Aubrey.  
  
As soon as they were seated, Lenny started talking rapidly.  
  
"So, are you wizard born or muggle born? The three of us are muggle born. We met in Diagon Alley, two days ago. By the way, this is Toni Lutzguv and this is Corey Killoney." He stopped for a moment to catch his breath.  
  
Aubrey had the feeling that Lenny was a very cheerful and outgoing kind of person.  
  
"Don't mind Lenny's mouth. In the two days we've known him, he's barely shut up!" Toni told Aubrey, giggling a little.  
  
"Yes, well, I'm sure that…say, we haven't caught your names yet!" Lenny cried.  
  
"Oh, sorry. I'm Aubrey Potter, this is my cousin, Jessica Weasley, and my two best friends, Angel Jordan and Kevin Malfoy."  
  
Toni's eyes grew big.  
  
"I've read about your dads and mums! They were helpers in the war against the Lord Voldemort guy!"  
  
Aubrey nodded uncomfortably.  
  
She hated when people clung to her because of her father's fame.  
  
"Lay off the girl, Tone!" Corey commanded, speaking for the first time.  
  
Corey gave them all a cheery smile and was about to say something when the door slid open a second time and in stepped-"Whitney!" Aubrey cried, standing up and making room for the tall girl.  
  
Whitney smiled thankfully.  
  
"Thanks…Midas kicked me out of his compartment and Justine did too. I'm just an annoying little sister to them…And there's two more at home!"  
  
Aubrey patted Whitney in a knowing fashion.  
  
"Believe me, I know how it feels to be over run. I have six little brothers and sisters and there's another on the way." She told her new friend.  
  
"Same with us three." Kevin added, motioning to Jessica, Angel and he.  
  
Toni gave a low whistle.  
  
"That's a lot of kids…I take it you're the oldest?"  
  
The four nodded in unison, shuddering involuntarily at the thought of another sibling.  
  
***  
  
The rest of the ride was spent getting to know each other.  
  
"So, your dad defeated Lord Voldemort?"  
  
"Yes, a week before I was born…Actually, I was born at Hogwarts, like Angel."  
  
"Really? Wicked!"  
  
"And you're Prof. Snape's daughter?"  
  
"Yes."  
  
"Uncle Sirius talks about him often…Sirius's daughter may come to Hogwarts mid-year, even though she's a year younger than us. Cassie is real smart…Real, real, real smart, like Jessi."  
  
Jessica blushed.  
  
"I get it from my mum." She muttered.  
  
Toni nodded slowly.  
  
"I didn't know there was such a thing as magic until I got my letter." She told her newfound friends.  
  
"Neither did the two of us." Corey said, motioning to Lenny and himself.  
  
After a good deal of more talking, the girls kicked the boys out and changed into their black Hogwarts robes.  
  
Just as they finished, the train began to slow down.  
  
The second it was stopped, Aubrey jumped off the train, gripping Star's carrier in one hand and Stormi's cage in the other.  
  
"Firs' years! Firs' Years!" A booming voice met the excited witch.  
  
Aubrey took off towards her old friend, Hagrid, who was beckoning first years over to him.  
  
"Hey Hagrid! How you doing?" Jessica asked, once they were all assembled and had started to walk down to the lake.  
  
"Alright…And yehself?"  
  
Jessica smiled back at the giant of a man.  
  
"Wonderful! Mum and dad give you their love, of course. Mum is complaining about the baby…It's going to be another boy!" Jessica said in a rapid tone.  
  
"Eh? And how's Cassie?"  
  
"Great! Dumbledore wants her to come here a year early!"  
  
Hagrid just smiled and got into one of the boats.  
  
"Well, yeh'll be sorted soon. See yeh at the feast!" He called before shoving off and leaving the first years to follow. 


	5. Awe

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.  
  
  
  
Aubrey, Whitney, Lenny and Kevin decided to share a boat.  
  
After a good three minutes of debating, Lenny and Kevin picked up the oars and started rowing, complaining all the while about 'slave labor'.  
  
It was getting dark by the time the first years rounded the bend of land and, for some, got their first look of Hogwarts.  
  
The students stared in awe at the grand looking castle.  
  
Even Aubrey, who had been born there, was amazed.  
  
Once the initial shock wore off, the first years resumed rowing and reached the shore in a matter of minutes.  
  
Aubrey, Whitney, Kevin and Lenny ran over to meet up with Toni, Corey, Angel and Jessica.  
  
The eight friends clumped together and walked up the staircase from the small harbor in which they had docked and stood behind Hagrid as he knocked on the large door.  
  
A stern looking woman with graying hair and spectacles opened it, nodding curtly as Hagrid told her that he had brought the first years over.  
  
Of course, this was Prof. McGonagall, whom Aubrey knew well.  
  
Three years after her father had vanquished Voldemort, Professor Minerva McGonagall had married Commander Keith Brinks.  
  
Despite her and his age, they had had three children, Atlanta (eight), Calypso (six), and Iris (five).  
  
"That will be all, Hagrid. Run along to the banquet now." McGonagall said.  
  
Once he was gone, she turned to all the first years.  
  
"Welcome to Hogwarts. I am Professor McGonagall, the deputy headmistress of Hogwarts. Soon the start of term banquet will begin, but first you must be sorted into a house."  
  
Aubrey tuned out as McGonagall droned on and on, snapping back when Toni nudged her.  
  
McGonagall was leading them through the door and into a large dining hall.  
  
There were four tables, one for each of the houses: Gryffindor, Slytherin, Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff.  
  
Aubrey's green eyes looked up and down the tables.  
  
They paused at the Gryffindor table, where Midas was sitting, staring at her in a funny way.  
  
Then they stopped at the Ravenclaw table, where Justine gave her a small wave.  
  
Finally they rested on the fifth and final table, where Albus Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogwarts, sat.  
  
Aubrey had met Dumbledore several times before, usually on her siblings or cousins birthdays.  
  
Dumbledore noticed her gaze and winked at her.  
  
Aubrey blushed and turned her gaze to Prof. McGonagall, who was bringing out a stool with a scruffy, tattered hat rested.  
  
"The Sorting Hat." Aubrey muttered to Toni.  
  
"What does it do?" Toni wondered out loud.  
  
"You'll see." Aubrey whispered back.  
  
As if on cue, the hat's brim opened and it started to sing.  
  
(A/N: Didn't have an idea as to what I should write.Cut away to the end of the song!)  
  
As soon as the hat finished, the Great Hall burst into applause.  
  
Once the applause died down, McGonagall stepped forward, a parchment in her hand.  
  
"Avery, Desmond!" She cried.  
  
A scrawny, ratty looking boy stepped out of the crowd of new students and slunk over to the stool.  
  
He placed the Hat on his head; it wasn't five seconds before it called "SLYTHERIN!"  
  
Next came Bambino, Kelly (Hufflepuff), then Barch, Orville (Slytherin), and then "Bolewick, Leonard!"  
  
Lenny turned to Aubrey, Jessica, and the others, bowing.  
  
"Well, mates, if we aren't in the same house then it was a pleasure getting to know you!" He said before racing to the stool and jamming the hat over his dreadlocks.  
  
The Hat almost immediately called "GRYFFINDOR!"  
  
Lenny took the Hat off and threw it in the air, caught it and placed it on the stool.  
  
Then he ran off to the Gryffindor table, dancing to a song in his head.  
  
After that there were twelve more kids sorted, three Ravenclaw, four Hufflepuff, two Slytherins and three Gryffindors before they came to the Js.  
  
Jarvis, Yolanda was sorted into Ravenclaw and Johnson, Henry, was sorted into Gryffindor.  
  
"Jordan, Angelo!" McGonagall cried.  
  
Aubrey saw Angel take a deep breath, square his shoulders, and walk steadily to the Hat and stool.  
  
He sat down carefully and picked the hat up before placing it over his head.  
  
After three seconds, the Hat called "GRYFFINDOR!"  
  
Angel took it off, and Aubrey saw a look of relief on his face.  
  
Next was, "Killoney, Corey!"  
  
Corey grinned and walked to the stool, placing the Hat over his dark, raven locks.  
  
After a minute or two, the Hat bellowed, "GRYFFINDOR!"  
  
Corey stumbled over to the Gryffindor table, obviously shocked that he hadn't been put in Hufflepuff.  
  
Right after Corey was, "Antoinette Luztgov!"  
  
Toni rolled her eyes (obviously displeased with the name) and trotted up to the Hat.  
  
Not even bothering to sit down, Toni dropped the hat lightly over her head and waited.  
  
"GRYFFINDOR!"  
  
Toni smiled and loped over to the Gryffindor table, sitting by Corey and Angel.  
  
Macnair, Lester came next.  
  
Aubrey gasped as she gazed upon the boy who had been so eager to kill her beloved Star.  
  
Jessica and Whitney also looked at Macnair (a Slytherin, of course) strode over to the Slytherin table.  
  
Kevin took a deep breath.  
  
"It's Slytherin for me." He muttered, striding over to the hat and placing it over his strawberry blond mane.  
  
Kevin's sorting was the longest yet.  
  
Five minutes later, the Hat still hadn't made a decision.  
  
Aubrey was just about to give up hope when, "GRYFFINDOR!"  
  
Kevin took the Hat off and wobbled over to the Gryffindor table.  
  
"Nott, Tanella!" "SLYTHERIN!"  
  
"Nullen, Joshua!" "RAVENCLAW!"  
  
"Ocnis, Cooper!" "RAVENCLAW!"  
  
"Oztarse, Imogene!" "HUFFLEPUFF!"  
  
"Parkinson, Patricia!" "SLYTHERIN!"  
  
"Pazell, Neil!" "GRYFFINDOR!"  
  
Finally, after what seemed liked eons, it was Aubrey's turn.  
  
"Potter, Aubrette!"  
  
Waves of murmurs swept through the crowd, and all eyes turned to the four- foot-ten girl walking across the Great Hall and to the stool.  
  
Aubrey sat down, biting on her lip.  
  
The last thing she saw before dropping the Hat over her head was Angel, giving her a thumbs up.  
  
'Ahh.If it isn't Harry Potter's daughter.' A voice in her ear said.  
  
Aubrey just prayed for Gryffindor.  
  
'Gryffindor, eh? Why not Hufflepuff? You're willing to work hard, and that's what Hufflepuffs all about. Or Ravenclaw.I can see a great deal of knowledge in your head! But I think you'd be best off in Slytherin.'  
  
'NO!' Aubrey begged.  
  
'Why not?'  
  
'Slytherin's not for me, okay?'  
  
'So you tell yourself.You know, Aubrey Potter, you can be great. I told your father this and I tell you. If you go in Slytherin, you'll have a powerful life.A life full of endless power. Tempting, is it not?'  
  
Aubrey frowned a little, though she knew the Hat could not see her.  
  
'I want power, but not through Slytherin.' She thought finally.  
  
"Very well.I guess you'll be in GRYFFINDOR!"  
  
Angel, Kevin, Toni, Lenny and Corey clapped the loudest as Aubrey ran to the table and plopped herself down in between Toni and Kevin.  
  
"Randalls, Marina!" A tall, slender, raven-haired girl stepped out from the crowd of students.  
  
She had dark gray eyes, a piercing glare and a purposeful stride.  
  
Aubrey immediately disliked her.  
  
Marina had barely placed the Sorting Hat on her head when it screamed "SLYTHERIN!"  
  
The cold looking girl stood and strode over to the Slythering table and sat down next to Macnair.  
  
Aubrey felt her temper flare as Marina caught Midas's eye and so obviously flirted with Midas, who so obviously liked her attention.  
  
'I do not like Midas! I just don't like that he's taking to that Marina girl.That's it! I just don't like Marina!' Aubrey told herself, though secretly, she wasn't so sure.  
  
"Snape, Whitney!"  
  
Whitney stepped forward and walked towards the stool like she owned the place.  
  
"GRYFFINDOR!" That Hat bellowed.  
  
Aubrey smiled as her new friend sat across from her, next to Lenny and Angel.  
  
"Sanchester, Lizzy!" "RAVENCLAW!"  
  
"Sullivan, Parker!" "HUFFLEPUFF!"  
  
"Tyson, Joyelle!" "GRYFFINDOR!"  
  
"Utton, Gregory!" "SLYTHERIN!"  
  
"Wassell, Karolina!" "RAVENCLAW!"  
  
"Weasley, Jessica!" Aubrey saw Jessica gulp and slink over towards the Hat.  
  
She placed it on her head and after a minute or so, it yelled "GRYFFINDOR!"  
  
Jessica squealed and ran over to sit by her cousin.  
  
"Webster, Lola!" "RAVENCLAW!"  
  
Last of all was Xerseas, Ronan, who became a Hufflepuff.  
  
As soon as McGonagall had taken away the Hat and stool, Dumbledore stood up and waved his hand for silence.  
  
"Students, as usual, I have a few start of the term announcements. All students are to stay well away from the Forbidden Forest and the Womping Willow! No students are allowed to be out of their common room past eleven P.M. and students are not allowed on the grounds after ten P.M. Other than that, have a good year!" Dumbledore gave a merry wave and sat down.  
  
He clapped his hands, yelled "Let the feasting begin!" and sat back as the golden plates filled themselves with food.  
  
Aubrey's stomach growled at the sight of the delicious food and she suddenly remembered how long ago breakfast was.  
  
"Hungry, are you?" Aubrey jumped up and dropped the chicken leg she was holding.  
  
"Midas! Don't scare me like that!" She hissed at the grinning boy behind her.  
  
Midas just chuckled and grabbed the dropped chicken, chewing on it delicately.  
  
Aubrey got herself another piece and tried to strike up conversation with her newfound friend.  
  
"So.You're a fourth year?" She asked, taking a sip of pumpkin juice.  
  
Midas nodded.  
  
"Yeah. I'm on the Quidditch Team, too. I'm the keeper. I suspect you'll be going out for the Team next year?"  
  
"Oh, yeah. I inherited my father's seeker skills." Aubrey told Midas.  
  
"Super.Hey, I got a great idea! Snitch some food and come with me!" He whispered.  
  
"Why?"  
  
"You'll see!" Midas whispered, slipping away from the table.  
  
Aubrey turned to Jessica, who was talking animatedly with Lenny.  
  
"Hey, Jess, I'm going on a little picnic with Midas.If I'm not in the Gryffindor Common Room by ten, assumed I've been abducted by aliens and send for help!" She hissed to her cousin, who made puckered lips and kissing noises.  
  
Aubrey rolled her eyes and grabbed two rolls, an apple and a leg of chicken.  
  
She stood up, made a fake yawn and walked out, praying no one noticed. 


	6. Surprise

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.  
  
  
  
Aubrey stepped cautiously outside the Great Hall and looked around for Midas.  
  
She saw him standing on a staircase a ways down, beckoning.  
  
Aubrey padded silently up to him.  
  
"This had better be good." She told Midas.  
  
"Oh, don't worry, it'll be more than good." Midas told her before running up the stairs and leaving Aubrey to follow.  
  
***  
  
Twelve staircases, three dark corridors, five secret passageways and thirty- two suits of armor later, Midas and Aubrey emerged from a secret tunnel and into a dark room.  
  
Aubrey, who was sweaty and out of breath from the run, collapsed on the ground, which was covered with a plushy, soft, rug, seriously considering hexing Midas senseless.  
  
"Where in Merlin's name are we?" She asked after a few moments of panting on the ground.  
  
"Why don't you see for yourself?" Midas asked, clapping his hands.  
  
Suddenly the room was filled with light.  
  
Aubrey looked around and gasped.  
  
They were in a living room of sorts, with four satiny couches, two colored gold and two colored scarlet.  
  
The couches surrounded a small wooden table that shone with a gold luster and a roaring fire had been lit previous to their arrival.  
  
The carpet Aubrey was seated on was scarlet and the walls were made of a reddish mahogany wood.  
  
The rest of the furniture (three bookshelves, two desks, countless vases and candles, etc.) were all colored either scarlet or gold and there were many statues of lions.  
  
On one of the walls there hung a picture of four people, two men and two women.  
  
Aubrey recognized them immediately from all the books and stories she had read with them in them.  
  
"The four Founders…Is this Godric Gryffindor's old quarters?" She asked.  
  
Midas nodded slowly.  
  
"I also know where Salazar Slytherin, Rowena Ravenclaw and Helga Hufflepuff's quarters are." He murmured.  
  
Aubrey raised an eyebrow.  
  
"Why did you show me this?" She asked.  
  
Midas blushed and turned away.  
  
"I…I just felt like it." He told her quietly.  
  
"Yes, well, thanks, Midas." Aubrey muttered before turning to explore her surroundings.  
  
First she looked at the bookshelves, which were intact and the books were in perfect condition (surprising for furniture so old).  
  
Next she looked at the painting more carefully.  
  
Godric Gryffindor had blonde hair, like corn, and flashing blue eyes.  
  
Salazar Slytherin had a sneering face, black hair and a snake curled around his left arm.  
  
Helga Hufflepuff was a happy, slender looking woman with fire red hair like Aubrey's and big hazel brown eyes.  
  
Then came Rowena Ravanclaw.  
  
Rowena had golden brown curls that tumbled out of a messy bun.  
  
She wore prim glasses and had amber eyes.  
  
"Nice picture, huh?"  
  
Aubrey screeched in surprise and backed into Midas.  
  
"Don't sneak up on me like that!" She cried, backing away and frowning.  
  
Midas just gave her a strange smile.  
  
"Sorry…Listen, the real reason I wanted to bring you here was to give you this book…It's the real deal on the Founders. I…I just have a feeling that you'll need it." He said, shoving a thick book into her arms.  
  
Aubrey gave a grunt and tried not to collapse under the book's weight.  
  
"Thanks, Midas. Now…I think we should get back to the common room. People might start talking." She told him, flashing a bright smile.  
  
If she hadn't been so eager to show Jessica the book, she might have noticed the look on Midas's face.  
  
***  
  
"So, where'd you two go?" Jessica asked her cousin as soon as Aubrey walked in the first year girl's dorm.  
  
Aubrey dropped the large book on the bed and picked up Star.  
  
"Oh…He just wanted to give me a book. About the four Founders." She told Jessica, Toni, and Whitney, who had all crowded around her bed.  
  
"So…there were no smooches?" Toni asked, puckering up her lips and making smacking noises.  
  
"No! There were no smooches, kisses, or any kind of flirtatious acts!" Aubrey snapped, pulling the curtains to the four poster bed around it.  
  
She sighed and ignored the giggles outside the curtains.  
  
She slipped into a loose night shirt and a pair of shorts.  
  
When she opened the curtains again, she found all the girls in the dorm (there were nine) dressed the same.  
  
Most of the girls were in the center of the circular room, talking happily.  
  
Aubrey remembered the bony girl with rusty colored pigtails was Imogene and that the short girl with strawberry blonde hair and small, wire frame glasses was Tina Figg.  
  
The girl with bushy black hair was Sarah Grant and the cute girl with a big hairdo was Olivia Cunnings.  
  
After that came Toni, Jessica, and Whitney…and that made eight…where was the ninth girl?  
  
Then Aubrey noticed the ninth girl slinking out of the dorm room, obviously not wanting to be seen.  
  
Curiosity got the better of Aubrey and she tiptoed after the girl, who had coffee colored skin, big hazel eyes and a long black braid…Joyelle was her name.  
  
Aubrey crept down the stairs and into the common room.  
  
She heard sobbing from a chair by the fire.  
  
Creeping softly over to the chair, she whirled it around, and gasped. 


	7. Pity

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.  
  
  
  
Aubrey stared at the girl in the chair with a mixture of shock and interest.  
  
Joyelle tried to cover her face, but it was too late.  
  
"What's the matter?" Aubrey asked.  
  
Joyelle looked up at Aubrey and glared.  
  
"What does it look like the matter is?" She asked, pointing at the huge black eye that had obviously been covered by makeup and a swift charm.  
  
Aubrey noted Joyelle spoke with a deep southern accent.  
  
"I'm sorry…May I ask what happened?"  
  
Joyelle sneered and brought her knees to her chest.  
  
"You can ask; it doesn't mean I'll tell." She spat, her hazel eyes blazing.  
  
Aubrey put on a smile and tried to sit down in the chair beside Joyelle only to find that it was taken up by Joyelle's feet.  
  
"What are you trying to prove? That you're as good and brave as your parents? You can stop trying to be nice, Potter. I don't take kindly to pity."  
  
Aubrey took a deep breath.  
  
This Joyelle was really irking her.  
  
"I was just trying to be nice!" She snapped.  
  
Joyelle snorted.  
  
"Nice? Honey, I don't need nice. Just back off and I'll be alright. Like I said before, I don't like people's pity." Joyelle said, standing and stalking out of the common room, slamming the portrait hole behind her.  
  
Aubrey flopped into the chair and fumed.  
  
'How dare she? I was only trying to be nice! Gods!'  
  
Aubrey was so deep in thought she didn't notice a tall boy behind her chair until he placed his hand on her shoulder.  
  
"Midas! What are you doing down here?" Aubrey asked, glaring at him.  
  
Midas just smirked and sat down.  
  
"I was looking for you." He told her.  
  
Aubrey stared at him.  
  
"Excuse me?" She asked.  
  
Midas smiled sweetly.  
  
"I was looking for you, Aubrey." He smiled again. "I wanted to talk."  
  
Aubrey frowned.  
  
"I'm in no mood to talk!" She snapped before storming up to her dormitory, Joyelle's words playing through her mind.  
  
I don't need your pity… 


	8. Confusion

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.  
  
  
  
The next morning dawned bright and early.  
  
Reluctantly, Aubrey dragged herself from bed and into the dorm shower.  
  
Slowly she woke up as the water cascaded around her.  
  
"Hey, Aubrey! Hurry up, you're not at home anymore!"  
  
Sarah's muffled voice reached Aubrey's ears.  
  
She turned off the water flow and dried off, slipping into her robes and drying her hair with a quick charm.  
  
Aubrey flung open the bathroom door to find the rest of the Gryffindor first years standing there.  
  
Imogene was the quickest and she scrambled into the bathroom, locking the door.  
  
Jessica, Whitney, and Toni had already showered so the four friends trotted down to the Great Hall, preparing for their first day of classes.  
  
"So, what do we have first?" Whitney asked, pouring milk onto her cereal.  
  
"I don't know…Let me check!" Jessica rustled around in her bag and produced a schedule.  
  
"Hmm…First class of the day…Cool! Double Charms with Hufflepuff!"  
  
Aubrey nodded half-heartedly.  
  
Last night she had been a bit snippy with Midas…But why was he following her around?  
  
And Joyelle…Who had given her that bruise?  
  
Many questions played in the young red-head's mind, each one confusing her more.  
  
"Morning, Aubrey."  
  
Aubrey jumped up and hit her knee on the table, which hurt a lot.  
  
"Midas! What in the devil's name do you want now?" Aubrey asked, her green eyes flashing angrily.  
  
Midas's smile was wiped from his face, replaced by a hurt look.  
  
"Sorry…I just wanted to say good morning."  
  
Aubrey frowned deeply.  
  
What was it with this boy?  
  
"Well, go say good morning to someone else! I'm in no mood talk to you!"  
  
With that, Aubrey stalked out of the Great Hall, Jessica following close behind.  
  
***  
  
Aubrey was in a fowl mood by the time Charms was through.  
  
Her partner, a chubby girl named Cynthia Connells, had accidentally lit her new robes on fire, almost succeeding in lighting Aubrey herself on fire.  
  
To make matters worse, Joyelle kept making faces at her.  
  
Coupled with the fact that her knee was throbbing from earlier and that she had had her hair turned pink, Aubrey was in no mood to be messed with.  
  
Toni, Whitney, Jessica, Lenny, Corey, Kevin, and Angel all followed at safe distances.  
  
"Well, well, well…If it isn't the all famous, cat owning Potter girl." Lester Macnair's cold voice cut through the air like a dagger.  
  
He and his gang of cronies blocked Aubrey's way, sneering cruelly.  
  
Macnair strode forward and tore Aubrey's notebook from her arms, throwing it to one of his friends.  
  
Next he grabbed arms, pinning her against the wall.  
  
Angel and Lenny made a move to save their friend, but they two were held back.  
  
Macnair's icy blue eyes bore into Aubrey's.  
  
"You're a pretty thing, aren't you?" He asked, smiling evily.  
  
"How's about a kiss? Huh? Come on!"  
  
Aubrey struggled as the stronger boy leaned down to kiss her.  
  
"I thought I told you to stay away from these girls."  
  
Macnair froze and whirled around, coming face to face with Midas and three of his friends.  
  
"Hey, we were just joking around. No harm-AH!"  
  
Macnair grunted and Midas lifted him off his feet by his collar.  
  
"My father will hear about this. Now go to your nest class."  
  
Macnair needed no further warning and bolted down the hall, his groupies racinf after him.  
  
Aubrey smiled thankfully at Midas.  
  
"Thanks, for saving me again. I'm sorry about how I acted at breakfast…I guess I'll see you later!" Aubrey flashed her new friend a bright smile and winked before trotting down the hall.  
  
A new question filled her mind.  
  
How did Midas always know where she was, especially when Macnair was around?  
  
Again, Aubrey's mind filled with confusion. 


	9. Horror

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.  
  
  
  
Aubrey fell into bed that night, tired from her first day of classes.  
  
Joyelle had taunted her all day, going so far as to set Aubrey scarlet hair on fire.  
  
Despite all Joyelle's difficulties, Aubrey felt drawn to the girl.  
  
She felt a bond between them for some strange reason.  
  
On a happier note, Midas had become a good friend.  
  
He had guided her through the whole day, though Aubrey told herself it was because Whitney was his little sister and not because of an attraction beyond the boundaries of a good friendship.  
  
But still…Aubrey had excepted the fact that she liked Midas a great deal earlier that day.  
  
Unfortunately, practically every other girl at Hogwarts felt that way, even some Sixth and Seventh years.  
  
His most vigorous suitor was none other than Marina Randalls, the cold-eyed Slytherin.  
  
Aubrey had been right when she had thought she'd dislike the girl.  
  
In their first class together, Herbology, Marina had been a "Bloody whore!" as Jessica had put it.  
  
She was icy, rude, insulting and haughty.  
  
She and Aubrey had made instant enemies when Marina had spilled dirt all over Aubrey and refused to clean up or apologize.  
  
The fact that Aubrey had slugged her hadn't helped much either, but after the comment Marina made about her mother…Who could blame her?  
  
Aubrey smiled to herself and burrowed down in her covers.  
  
She would deal with Marina and Midas and Joyelle tomorrow.  
  
***  
  
Aubrey sat up with a start.  
  
She wasn't in her bed at Hogwarts.  
  
In fact, she was nowhere near Hogwarts.  
  
Aubrey's feet looked bloody, but on closer inspection she found that it wasn't her that was bleeding, it was the ground!  
  
After looking around some more, Aubrey found that the ground was not bleeding but soaked in blood!  
  
Horror set in as she looked around her surroundings; a bloody, smelly, death-ridden battlefield.  
  
Aubrey walked around as if in a dream, which she hoped she was in.  
  
She came upon a small pond, which had somehow avoided being clouded by blood and dirt.  
  
Aubrey looked at the water, and, to her utter surprise, she found she had aged some nine or ten years.  
  
"Aubrey, thank Merlin that I've found you, before they did."  
  
Aubrey jumped in shock and she turned around.  
  
The person standing over her was unclear; they were blurred in such a way that Aubrey could not tell if they were male or female.  
  
Not even their voice betrayed their sex.  
  
All Aubrey could tell is that they were someone she knew and trusted very well.  
  
"I…I didn't think anyone else was alive." Aubrey said, standing and taking the person's hand, shutting her eyes away from the horror and fear of the battlefield.  
  
"Neither did I, but then I saw you…Come, let's go-UGH!"  
  
The person was cut off as an arrow pierced their heart.  
  
"Why use magic when the muggles have created such useful weapons?" A cold voice asked.  
  
She turned to see two people sitting atop horses, their faces and bodies also blurred.  
  
Aubrey gulped, bile rising in her throat.  
  
These were people that she had once loved, but that had betrayed her trust.  
  
That was where she was; the battlefield on which their final battle had taken place.  
  
Both of the people took out their wands and began yelling the killing curse.  
  
For one second, Aubrey saw their faces.  
  
"NOOOO!" She screamed, sitting up in bed.  
  
All the girls in Gryffindor Tower were gathered around her, their eyes wide.  
  
"I'm…I'm sorry. Just a nightmare." Aubrey muttered, pulling the curtains around her bed.  
  
She rolled over and thought with all her might.  
  
But no matter how hard she thought, she couldn't remember what she had screamed about. 


	10. Embarrassment

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.  
  
  
  
The first month of Hogwarts passed by quickly for Aubrey.  
  
The young red-head learned more and more each day, also becoming closer friends with Midas and greater enemies with Marina and Joyelle.  
  
Before she knew it, it was Halloween.  
  
Students fritted about the grounds, whispering excitedly.  
  
Rumors that Dumbledore had hired the Gruesome Twosome for music spread throughout the student body and soon they were excitedly pouring into the Great Hall.  
  
Aubrey ran over to the table where Midas and his two best friends, Morgan Morris and Thomas Philbrin, both fourth years and on the Gryffindor Quidditch team, as Beaters.  
  
"Mind if I sit down?" She asked.  
  
Thomas nodded his head and Morgan nudged Midas in the ribs, winking and making catcalls.  
  
Midas, in response, kicked both boys under the table.  
  
"Is something the matter?" Aubrey asked, seating herself and raising an eyebrow.  
  
Aubrey suspected he was embarrassed by his friends actions.  
  
Midas shook his head vigorously, though he was turning a deep red.  
  
"Hey, can we join the party?"  
  
Aubrey looked up to see Toni and Jessica.  
  
It was Midas's turn to laugh and point and Thomas's and Morgan's turn to blush.  
  
"Is there something going on we don't know about?" Toni asked Thomas, making him turn a brilliant shade of pink.  
  
Toni just sighed and mutter, "Boys!" under her breath before piling food on her plate.  
  
"So, where's the rest of your merry band?" Morgan asked halfway into the meal.  
  
"Oh, we don't know. The three of us got cut off from them and decided to grace you with our highly requested presence." Jessica replied.  
  
Conversation went on like that for a while, until all the food was gone.  
  
By now, people were dancing to the fast beat, rock-and-roll lyrics of the Gruesome Twosome, a pair of brothers that were covered in matted hair and ugly blemishes.  
  
Toni and Jessica went to go find the other five members of their 'Merry Band'.  
  
Morgan and Thomas, after winking and whispering something that sounded like, "Go get em, Tiger!" scampered off into the crowd.  
  
Midas seemed embarrassed again.  
  
His pale skin had flushed a pretty pink and his black eyes were trained on his hands, which were unconsciously destroying his napkin.  
  
Aubrey herself felt awkward, being left alone with her crush…Who was supposed to be her good friend.  
  
He probably saw her as a little sister type, not the girl he wanted to take to the Yule Ball.  
  
After a few more moments, Midas broke the silence.  
  
"So, Aubrey, would you like-"  
  
"Oy! Aubrey! Want to dance?"  
  
Aubrey looked up to see the Hufflepuff Quidditch Captian, Alan Grace, smiling down at her.  
  
"Alright! One moment!" Alan nodded and backed off.  
  
"What were you going to say?" She asked.  
  
Midas shook his head and tried to hide his crushed face.  
  
"Mide, are you alright?" Aubrey asked, her face one of concern.  
  
"No…Yes…Whatever! You just have a nice time!" He muttered before stalking off towards the Entrance, where Thomas and Morgan awaited him, looks of puzzlement on their faces.  
  
Aubrey saw Midas's lips move and then he disappeared around the corner.  
  
Thomas and Morgan glared at Alan before slipping around the corner themselves.  
  
"Aubrey, are you coming?" Alan asked, his gray eyes looking slightly annoyed.  
  
"Oh? Huh? Oh! Yes, I'm coming!" Aubrey replied, leaping up and taking Alan's arm.  
  
Alan lead her onto the floor and the two danced away, though Aubrey's mind was far from her handsome dancing partner.  
  
What had Midas been so upset about?  
  
And why was he so fidgety earlier?  
  
Aubrey sighed. Just one more question to add to the million bubbling in her head. 


	11. Serene

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. He and all his friends belong to the talented J.K. Rowling.  
  
A few days after the Halloween, Aubrey received her first kiss.  
  
Alan owled her, asking to meet her outside the Herbology Greenhouse.  
  
After reading the note and sending off her reply (yes) Aubrey went up to her dorm to put something nice on.  
  
Alan Grace was one of the most sought-after boys at Hogwarts.She couldn't just go in plain black robes!  
  
"What's up, Brey?"  
  
Aubrey turned to see Whitney lounging on her bed, reading the latest addition of 'Teen Witch'.  
  
"Oh, I was just changing! Alan Grace-you know, the scrumptious blond guy- just asked me to meet him by the Herbology Greenhouse! Something about getting help in a class." Aubrey said quickly, throwing on some mauve colored robes and her black trench coat.  
  
Immediately Whitney's cheerful expression went sour.  
  
"Oh, him?" She asked, sitting up daintily. "What would you want with him?"  
  
"Oh, what wouldn't I? He's only the best looking guy here.And my main crush!" Aubrey decided not to tell Whitney about Midas.  
  
"Really, now?" Whitney asked, an eyebrow arching in a way her father's often did in Potions.  
  
Aubrey nodded vigorously.  
  
"Oh, yeah. I mean, with that adorable smile and that silky golden hair? Don't you like him?"  
  
Whitney shook her head.  
  
"You know, he isn't the only guy who likes you." She said quietly, as if trying to send Aubrey a message.  
  
"He isn't?" Aubrey asked, genuinely surprised.  
  
"No, he isn't. Don't you notice the way boys look at you? Like you're a Firebolt 8000? Or that someone's always there to defend you when Macnair tries to pick on you? It's because they like you, Aubrey, they like you!"  
  
"But I don't know why!" Aubrey said, hardly believing her friend.  
  
"Oh, for heaven's sake, Brey! Are you blind? Take a look in the mirror!" Whitney said, her usually pale skin flushing.  
  
Suddenly, though, she calmed.  
  
"Well, have a good time." Whitney muttered.  
  
Before Aubrey could ask Whitney if she looked alright, her friend had leapt from her bed and raced down the stairs.  
  
Aubrey gave a mental shrug before twisting her hair up into a bun and prancing down the stairs.  
  
"Bye, Whitney!" She called to her friend.  
  
Whitney was too busy talking to Midas (who looked positively ill) to wave goodbye.  
  
Midas, however, whipped his head around and watched Aubrey walk out the portrait hole, before storming up the stairs to his dorm.  
  
For a moment, Aubrey paused, wishing that she could comfort the so obviously vexed boy.  
  
But then she remembered Alan (who actually saw her as a girl) and raced off towards the Greenhouse. ***  
  
As Aubrey walked towards the Greenhouse, her boots crunching the layer of frost preceding the soon-to-come winter snow.  
  
Her breath came out in clouds of mist and her heart beat faster and faster as she neared her destination.  
  
Finally she saw Alan, leaning on the glass Greenhouse, looking better than ever.  
  
After taking a deep breath, Aubrey stepped into the Greenhouse clearing and waved to Alan, who grinned and came to meet her.  
  
"Aubrey! Glad you could make it." He said in his soft, dreamy, soothing voice.  
  
Aubrey smiled back and clapped her glove covered hands together.  
  
"So, you said you needed help? With what? After all, I'm only a first year. How could I ever help you?"  
  
Alan gave her a meaningful look before taking a deep breath and saying, "You can give me a kiss."  
  
Aubrey gasped but before she could utter anything he had pressed his lips against hers.  
  
Aubrey's mind was reeling.  
  
Her first kiss.  
  
She was getting her first kiss, right now, from Alan Grace, one of the most handsome boys she knew.  
  
Aubrey felt totally serene.  
  
When Alan broke away a couple of moments later, Aubrey was speechless.  
  
"I like you, Aubrey Potter. I.I hope you like me too." He muttered, seeming for all the world like a nervous first year who had just kissed the most attractive fifth year at Hogwarts, instead of it being the other way around.  
  
"Yeah, Alan, I like you too." Aubrey murmured, blushing when Alan took her hand and they began to walk back to school.  
  
Everything was going well, when all of a sudden, a black blur ran into Alan and Aubrey.  
  
"Bloody hell! Watch where you're going!" Alan cried, helping Aubrey up and glaring at the crumpled figure on the ground.  
  
"Er, sorry 'bout that." The figure muttered, picking itself up.  
  
It was, of all people, Midas.  
  
From the deep rose color Aubrey saw on his cheeks, she knew he had witnessed the kiss.  
  
Strange thing was that he didn't look disgusted to see his little sister's best friend kissing, or angry that someone had made a move on a girl he considered a little sister.No, Midas looked crushed.  
  
Before Aubrey could ask him what was the matter, Midas had mumbled a brief apology and darted off towards the school, probably to visit his father in the dungeons.  
  
"Strange guy." Alan muttered, his eyebrows raised.  
  
"Yeah." Was all Aubrey could say.  
  
That was strange, two out of three of the Snape children running off on her like that.  
  
"Well, we might as well keep walking." Alan suggested, and for a moment Aubrey forgot all about Midas and Whitney acting weirdly and walked across the Hogwarts grounds with Alan, a serene happiness surrounding her. 


	12. Miserable

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. He and all his friends belong to the talented J.K. Rowling.  
  
Midas Snape staggered miserably down to his father's office.  
  
After all, hadn't he told Midas to drop by any time he needed advice?  
  
Of course, Midas thought glumly, that had only been to please his mother, whom thought her husband should "get more in touch" with his children this year.  
  
Midas entered his father's classroom (known as the dungeons to most) and sat down at one of the desks, pitying himself and wishing with all his might he was Alan Grace.  
  
Not that Midas admired or liked Alan.  
  
Actually, truth be told, Midas hated the preppy blond Keeper, with his clean cut good looks.  
  
The only reason Midas would ever want to be Alan is because then, and only then, could he kiss Aubrey.  
  
Aubrey, with her fire red hair, radiant catlike green eyes and her cute smile that could charm a dragon from its den.  
  
"What I'd give to have her for a girlfriend." Midas said out loud, sighing and leaning back in his chair.  
  
He leaned a little to far and toppled over.  
  
"Who in the-Midas! What in the name of all that is magic are you doing down here?" Midas looked up at his father, Severus Snape, who loomed angrily over him.  
  
"Oh, hey, dad." He said dazedly.  
  
"Good lord! Midas, get up, now!" Severus snapped, yanking his son to his feet.  
  
"Now, why are you down here?" He asked.  
  
"I wanted to know if you had a potion to turn me into Alan Grace." Midas said.  
  
He had hit his head when he had fallen and now was willing to do anything to get Aubrey.  
  
"Alan Grace? Of all people you want to be, Alan Grace is the one? That preppy blond boy?"  
  
Midas nodded. "Please? I really want to be Alan Grace."  
  
Severus helped his eldest child to his office, where he plopped him down in a cushy seat.  
  
"I thought you hated Alan Grace! Now, all of a sudden, you want to be him?"  
  
"Oh, I still hate him." Midas said, taking the tea his father offered to him.  
  
"But then why-Merlin's beard, Midas, what is the matter with you?"  
  
Midas looked up to his father, a sad but drunken look in his eyes.  
  
Suddenly Severus understood.  
  
"Ah," He said, smiling slyly at his son, "It's a girl."  
  
"No, it isn't a-" "Your jealous, because Mr. Grace has the girl you like!" Severus cried, sitting down at his desk.  
  
"I do not care that Aubrey is dating Alan!" Midas yelled back, realizing too late that he had already begun to dig his own grave.  
  
"Aubrey? As in Aubrey Potter? The little red head first year who's friends with Whitney?"  
  
Midas blushed deeply but nodded.  
  
Severus made a horrified face.  
  
"Of all the girls-and you know you could have a lot-you chose Harry Potter's daughter?"  
  
"Yeah. I mean, she's sweet and pretty and smart-" "Midas, shut up." Severus snapped, rubbing his temples.  
  
"Just remember. It's just a crush. It's not like they're in love." It took Midas a moment to realize his father was talking to himself.  
  
"So, can I have the potion?" Midas asked hopefully.  
  
"NO!" Severus yelled, slamming his fist on his desk.  
  
Midas cursed his luck and looked in the mirror his father had over his desk.  
  
"Do you think if I got gray contacts and dyed my hair blond Aubrey will notice me?" He asked, cocking his head, before going back to pitying his miserable situation.  
  
"Oh, this must be a bad dream. My son, my eldest son.He's fallen for Harry Potter's daughter! Bloody hell!" Severus buried his face in his hands and wished he had never met the oldest daughter of the Boy-Who-Lived. 


	13. Drowsy

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or and of his enemies and friends. They all belong to the talented J.K. Rowling.  
  
It was late at night in the Gryffindor common room, a month after Aubrey and Alan had kissed for the first time. What with spending much of her time with Alan, Aubrey's grades had begun to slip. Aubrey was the only one still in the room. She scribbled furiously on a four-foot long piece of parchment, desperate to finish it before it was due in Potions, early tomorrow morning.  
  
Aubrey knew she wouldn't get any slack from Snape, who had selected her out long ago to be his least favorite student. Aubrey assumed it was because she was a Potter, but every now and then Snape would glide past, muttering something about his eldest son not, "going to the Potters." Sighing, Aubrey rubbed her eyes drowsily.  
  
Snape (the old bugger) had ordered them to write a four-foot-long essay on the various uses of salamander spit. Aubrey had only two feet written. She'd never finish it by tomorrow. "I guess I need a little break." Aubrey said to herself, laying her head down on one of her five open books. Her eyes grew heavier and heavier by the second, until, with one little sigh, Aubrey drifted off to dreamland. ***  
  
"Marina! I'm getting tired! Why can't we go to sleep?"  
  
"Because, Jeanie, darling, this powder has to be ready by tomorrow, when the midterm tests begin! I didn't study for Herbology, and that's the only one we have tomorrow! If Prof. Nartino gets an sick before the tests, that lesson will be canceled."  
  
Aubrey awoke to the sound of hushed whispers. With an unpleasant jolt, she realized she wasn't in the Gryffindor common room anymore-and nowhere near it, for that matter. Her green eyes traveled over the layout of the room she was in, picking up any details that might betray her whereabouts. The room she was in was so dark she could barely tell. It had no windows in it and the only source of light was a dim candle, in the far corner, where four figures were clustered.  
  
Two of the four people in the corner were huddled together, and, even though Aubrey was all the way across the room, she could tell they were shaking. The other two people (she had decided that they were girls, from the slender figures and long nightgowns) were busy rummaging through a cupboard. With interest, Aubrey tiptoed carefully over to get a better view of the unfolding scene. BAM! CRASH! CRACK! Aubrey jumped when she accidentally ran into a table, knocking over a set of tubes filled with purple liquid.  
  
The heads of the girls whirled around and one of the girls gave a muffled shriek. The leader of the four, however, shoved one of her lackeys forward. "Go see what that was!" She hissed, crossing her arms while the timid girl scurried over to the table Aubrey was hiding behind. Aubrey took a deep breath and waited to be discovered. Suddenly the timid girl had rounded the corner and was looking right at Aubrey.  
  
"Oh, gods, I'm in trouble!" Aubrey said to herself, waiting for the girls to call out to her gang that she had found the spy. But nothing of the sort happened. In fact, the girl's eyes passed right over Aubrey, before she walked back to her friends.  
  
"Well, what did you find?" the leader asked in an impatient tone.  
  
"Nothing. No one was there, Marina." The girl answered.  
  
Aubrey peered around the corner in time to see the girls shrug and go back to what they were doing. "Hello? Guys?" she asked, wondering for the millionth time that second what was going on. Not one girl seemed to hear her. Deciding that she was some sort of invisible and soundless being, Aubrey watched the scene with interest.  
  
"Marina? Patricia? Why are we making this powder?"  
  
One of the girls rummaging through the cupboard turned around angrily. "Because, Claire," she said in a venomous tone, "Prof. Nartino said she was highly allergic to Salamander Powder! Don't you ever eavesdrop outside the teacher's lounge?"  
  
"Sorry, Patricia." The girl, Claire, squeaked.  
  
"Alright," the other girl rummaging through the cupboards said, "I have the ingredients! Let's split before Snape comes down here!"  
  
"Randalls!" Aubrey cried when she saw it was her enemy who was leading the burglarizing of, from what they said, Prof. Snape's private stores. Marina Randalls, along with Pansy Parkinson and the two girls Aubrey didn't know, prowled out of the Potion's classroom.  
  
Just as they were leaving, Aubrey heard Patricia snigger, "First thing tomorrow we'll slip it in the Nartino's morning grape juice!" Aubrey was about to slip out behind them when she felt a firm hand on her shoulder. ***  
  
Aubrey sat up, giving a small cry. Whirling around, she saw she was still in the common room. Standing behind her, grinning almost guiltily, was Midas Snape. Aubrey gave Midas a very warm smile, which seemed to ease the boy's mind.  
  
"I noticed that you were down here, really late, asleep.And I thought I'd wake you up, so you could go to bed." He said, blushing a little. Aubrey thought that made him look incredibly handsome. No matter how much she liked Alan (which was a lot) She'd always like Midas better.  
  
"Thanks." Aubrey said drowsily, stretching and picking up her books. "I guess I'll have to explain to your dad that I didn't have enough information to right his report." She said. It was Aubrey's turn to blush, though. "But he'll probably figure out that I was snogging behind Hagrid's hut with Ally, so then I'll be in deep trouble! Night, Midas!" She said, walking drowsily up the stairs.  
  
Midas watched her with a dumbstruck look on his face. "Ally?" He asked no one in particular. "She calls him.Ally?" 


	14. Contempt

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or and of his enemies and friends. They all belong to the talented J.K. Rowling.  
  
Severus Snape was jolted from a very sound and peaceful sleep when a loud voice whined, "Dad! She calls him Ally!" Severus sat strait up in bed, crying out when his head collided with that of his son, who had been hovering over his father, waiting for him to wake up. Grasping a growing lump, Severus shoved Midas off the bed and groaned, looking at the clock on his wall. It was one-fifteen A.M. on a Friday morning.  
  
"What the hell do you want, Midas?" Severus asked, not bothering to hide the contempt in his voice.  
  
"Daddy," Midas whined unhappily, like he had when he was three and needed help with something, "Aubrey calls Alan Grace Ally!" Severus wanted to shoot something right then. He cursed Aubrey Potter a million times over for putting whatever charm she had used on his son.  
  
"Dad, isn't that horrible?" Midas asked, looking up from the floor. Severus flopped back down, onto his pillows.  
  
"Midas, I don't care about what the Potter girl calls her brainless boyfriend. To tell you the truth, I think it's quite disturbing that you still whine like that, especially over that good-for-nothing vixen. What about Marina Randalls? Don't you like her?" Midas shook his head, his ebony eyes widened with surprise at the thought of possibly caring about someone other than his precious Aubrey.  
  
"No, she's kind of.slutty. I don't go for that kind of girl."  
  
Severus buried his face in his knees and groaned unhappily. "Why? Why did you have to like that little brat?" He asked, not really wanting an answer.  
  
Midas, wising up for once, didn't give one. Sniffing indignantly, he stood up and crossed his arms. "At least Whitney understands!" He snapped.  
  
Severus looked up. "You told your sister?"  
  
Midas shook his head. "Actually, she found my journal and read the poems about Aubrey...She thought it was very sweet and said she'd try and set us up." Midas frowned. "She's really bad at it." He muttered.  
  
Severus raised an eyebrow. "You write poetry about her?"  
  
Midas nodded, once again happy. "Want to hear one?"  
  
"Not really. Now get out of my room and never come back at an hour like this."  
  
"Okay. Night dad."  
  
Severus watched his eldest child leave the room, humming a happy tune. Come to think of it, Midas had never seemed so happy before he met the Potter girl. Usually he skulked around Snape Manor, studying and planning quidditch strategies.The only time he ever ventured out of his shell was when he was with his friends, playing quidditch, or talking about Aubrey. "Maybe," Severus said to himself, "this girl could teach him a thing or two." 


	15. Mischievous

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or and of his enemies and friends. They all belong to the talented J.K. Rowling.  
  
Aubrey awoke the next morning with a pit in her stomach. The dream she had had the night before startled her.Had it been real? Shaking her head, Aubrey got out of bed and stumbled into the shower. After hurriedly rinsing off, Aubrey slipped into some black robes and put her hair up in a messy bun. She raced down the stairs and into the common room (where only Toni, Midas, Thomas and Morgan remained).  
  
When Toni saw Aubrey, she grinned. "Hey, sleepy-head. The two of us were the last ones up the morning.All the other girls went down already. These three just came down, by the way. Midas said you were studying late last night."  
  
Aubrey yawned as if to clarify Midas's statement and shouldered her book bag. "Yeah, I was up really late last night, working on a report for Potions."  
  
Toni made a face. "You didn't finish it? Me neither.Of course, Ray could have had a hand in that." She flipped her honey blonde braid and winked mischievously at Aubrey.  
  
Immediately, Morgan's eyes were narrowed. "Who's Ray?" he asked from across the room.  
  
Toni gave him a strange grin before answering, "My boyfriend.And Alan's best friend.You know, Ray Smith? The Keeper on the Hufflepuff house quidditch team?"  
  
Morgan frowned. "What's with girls and Hufflepuffs these days? Aren't they the duffers?"  
  
Toni sneered at Morgan, saying in a cruel voice, "Well, he's better than you three are!"  
  
Morgan crossed his arms and glared at Toni, his mahogany bangs falling into his eyes. Toni frowned right back at him before grabbing Aubrey's arm and dragging her towards the portrait hole. "Come on, Brey. The Three Stooges obviously have grown tired of our presence!"  
  
Just as she was being pulled out of the hole by a steaming Toni, Aubrey distinctly heard Morgan say, "Well, Mide, I'm in the same boat as you now. Toni and Ray are together.What a bloody match that one is!"  
  
"Just how many friends does this Alan guy have?" Thomas asked.  
  
Midas shrugged. "I don't keep an eye on Mr. Perfect's social schedule." He muttered, glaring at the floor.  
  
Aubrey was unable to hear anymore of the conversation, seeing as Toni had slammed the portrait of the Fat Lady shut. "I can't believe the nerve of that bozo!" Toni cried once they were down the hall. "The nerve of him.To insult my boyfriend!" Aubrey nodded and grinned. She had a feeling Morgan cared a great deal for Toni.At least more than he let on.  
  
As they turned the corner and started down the stairs to the Entrance Hall, Aubrey suddenly remembered Jessica teasing her about Midas, when they first met him. "I think he likes you!" Sure, at the time Aubrey had laughed it off.But-  
  
"Hey, there's my girl!" Aubrey's deep thoughts about the possibility of Midas caring for her in "that" way were banished when Alan appeared out of the mass of students going to a leaving breakfast, Ray right on his heels. Alan pecked Aubrey on the lips, slipped his right arm around her waist, and all but dragged her over to the end of the Hufflepuff table, where Jessica already sat with Greg Landrey, a Hufflepuff chaser.  
  
Apparently Alan felt that dating Aubrey meant that he could "hook up" any of her friends and/or family members with friends of his own. "Bacon, Aubs?" Alan asked, using Aubrey's new nickname. She hadn't the heart to tell him she hated it.  
  
Aubrey was about to say yes when Patricia Parkinson and Marina Randalls passed her, giggling and swinging small pouches in their hands, snickering in their trademark mischievous way. With a feeling of dread forming in her stomach, Aubrey realized they had just come from the High Table, where the teachers dined. Turning to Jessica, Aubrey asked, "Hey, Jess, who were those two talking to?"  
  
Jessica raised an eyebrow but answered, "Prof. Nartino.Why, you think they're up to something?" Something in Jessica's voice caught her attention.  
  
"I do.you see, I had a dream last night.Those three were burglarizing Prof. Snape's private stores so they could poison Prof. Nartino." Aubrey said, glancing at the chubby young witch in violet robes.  
  
Jessica's eyes were wide and her pupils dilated. "I had a dream too.Only my dream was when she drank the juice, and got sick.and died.or something like that!" She whispered. Together, as if they had planned this all along, the two girls jumped from their seats and rushed to the High Table, where Prof. Nartino was about to take a sip from her morning juice.  
  
Just as her lips were about touch the goblet, Aubrey knocked it from her hand and Jessica pulled the startled witch back. The goblet landed on the table and burnt a hole through in and through the ground below. By now all the Great Hall was watching and McGonagall had rushed over to the two first year witches, a look of horror on her face.  
  
"What in the world.What was in that cup?" She asked, turning to Aubrey and Jessica, who were helping Prof. Nartino up from the ground.  
  
Snape, who had been two chairs down, had also joined the gathering. "It's Barbain powder, I'm sure of it." He said, sniffing the air around the burnt piece of table. "That stuff will burn holes through anything but gold and silver, which the goblets are made of. Even if Ms. Potter had knocked the goblet out of Prof. Nartino's hand, it would have burned right through the table and onto her."  
  
The Great Hall burst into excited whisper and Prof. Nartino fainted dead away. Aubrey stared at Snape and then the hole before saying, "But Marina and Patricia said they were trying to make Salamader powder.So they wouldn't have to take the tests!" Again the Great Hall burst into whispers, and many heads turned to the two girls sneaking out of the Great Hall.  
  
McGonagall ignored them and turned back to Aubrey and Jessica, a very strange look on her face. "Just how did you girls find this out?" She asked, her eyes closed as if she didn't want the answer.  
  
"We dreamt it." Jessica whispered, her eyes even wider now that she was telling an adult. "Brey dreamt that Patricia and Marina were burglarizing Prof. Snape's private stores and I dreamt that Prof. Nartino actually did take the potion.It was awful." She added, shivering.  
  
Snape's head had whipped up mid-story and his black eyes were boring into McGonagall's blue ones. "Minerva-should we tell their parents? Is this a side effect of-"  
  
"Shut up, Severus!" McGonagall hissed, turning from her colleague to Dumbledore, who had been watching in silence from the beginning.  
  
Aubrey noticed that the twinkle was gone from his usually merry eyes.replaced by a look of great sadness and maybe even fear. "It's beginning." He said softly, and Aubrey would have sold her Firebolt8000 right then to find out what exactly he meant. 


	16. Lovelorn

All week Aubrey and Jessica had to endure the ceaseless whispers, stares, and suspicious looks of their peers. Aubrey even caught her beloved Alan shooting her a questioning glance from time to time. Everybody wondered.  
  
They wondered how Aubrey and Jessica knew that the drink was poisoned; they wondered how they knew who was responsible. Marina Randalls and Patricia Parkinson has been on the edge of expulsion when Hogwart's Board of Council members had suddenly decided that they should "give the girls another chance".  
  
"Saved by their daddy's wallets, were they?" Toni had asked bitterly when she heard the news. She absolutely despised Patricia Parkinson, for reasons unknown to Aubrey.  
  
"Seems so," Corey had replied in the same bitter tone.  
  
Aubrey had even received a few owls from her friends in Godric's Hollow. But it wasn't as if she could answer their questions. She was just as confused as they were on the whole matter, if not more so.  
  
What had Dumbledore meant by "It's beginning." If he had meant that all her teacher's would begin to treat her like a ticking time bomb, then yes, it had begun. But other than that she didn't feel any different. Unless you counted the various and sporadic dreams predicting things that came to be the next day, the feeling that she knew what was going to happen the next second, and being able to tell who it was who would get their leg stuck in the trick floorboard that afternoon. And if being called a "weirdo", constantly under the threat of death (from Marina), and having your homework burned and charred by Joyelle wasn't bad enough she had to deal with Midas.  
  
Ever since he had woken her up in the common the night before the poisoning incident he had acted most strangely around her. If he wasn't shooting Aubrey those totally adorable looks-which Jessica had jokingly said with lovelorn-then he was purposely avoiding her or whispering secretively with Morgan and Thomas, glancing over at her every few seconds.  
  
Once or twice Aubrey had asked Whitney if her older brother was feeling all right. Whitney would just snort and say in a snippy tone, "Wouldn't you like to know!"  
  
That was another matter. The Snapes-save Midas-had taken to sending Aubrey Go-Shrivel-Up-and-Die looks whenever they thought she wasn't looking. Even Justine, who had always gone out of her way to say hello to Aubrey, had hopped on the Aubrey's-a-git train.  
  
But, despite all that, Aubrey's biggest problem was just unfolding. Alan had gotten fed up with people asking him what was "up" with his girlfriend.  
  
It had begun with a friendly, "Aubrey, we need to talk in the library." He had shot Toni and Lenny 'get lost' looks. Aubrey knew it couldn't be good. She had heard, and been told, various rumors about Alan and Sandra Dinclair, a fellow Hufflepuff and a cheerleader for the Hufflepuff cheer squad. She had also heard rumors about Alan breaking up with her. And now, when the time had finally come, Aubrey felt a surge of power.  
  
"So, what do you want to talk about?" Aubrey asked, raising an eyebrow in a way that she had seen her oldest cousin, Kiki, Charlie's oldest daughter, do many times when she talked to boys.  
  
Alan had looked up and down the row of shelves before answering. "I've been thinking a lot about us," he replied in a shaky tone. Aubrey, carefully taking into memory every story Kiki had told her about the way boys broke up with you, smiled in a catlike manner.  
  
"Have you, now? I've been thinking about us too."  
  
Alan raised an eyebrow as well. "Really? About us?"  
  
Aubrey widened her eyes in pretend surprise. "Us? Did I say us? Forgive me Alan, I meant to say that I had been thinking about me."  
  
"What.?"  
  
"Yes, Alan, myself. I'm not stupid, Alan. I know all about you and Sandy Dinclair. And if you're cheating on me then how am I benefiting from all this? The answer is that I'm not. Not one little bit.What I'm trying to say is that we're over. I don't want to have some time to myself and I don't need my space. I don't want to go out with you any more. Okay? I think that's where you were aiming as well." Before Alan could answer Aubrey was halfway to the door.  
  
She never even bothered to look back.  
  
And, within dumping Alan Grey, Aubrey became a legend.  
  
But not all legends are good.  
  
***  
  
Everyone was talking about it.  
  
Everyone knew about it.  
  
Everyone thought about it, too.  
  
Aubrey Potter, a first year, had dumped Alan Grey, not only a seventh year but also the captain of the Hufflepuff quidditch team. It was unheard of, outrageous!  
  
If Aubrey had thought people had been talking about her it was nothing compared to now. Now no one bothered to pretend that they weren't talking about her. This only caused Midas and Whitney to drift further away and finally Aubrey found that they no longer chose to be in her social circle. But she didn't dwell on the matter. She didn't have the time.  
  
Ever since her breakup with Alan (who sulked very often with ditzy Sandra Declair) Aubrey found that she, along with Jessica and Toni-decidedly her two closet friends-had a fair number of suitors. Which brought about her problem. Who should she go to the Yule Ball with?  
  
It wasn't as if she could just go; you had to be a fourth year or higher to do that.And it wasn't as if anyone hadn't offered to be her date; no, there were far to many willing boys.but none seemed to be right. For a moment Aubrey had considered asking Midas if he'd take her but, after talking to Sarah Grant, she found that he and Tilly Motser, a third year Gryffindor, were seeing each other "quite seriously".  
  
Finally, five days before the Yule Ball, Kevin and Lenny began to tease her. "Got no date, eh?" Lenny had asked in a sly voice.  
  
"It's no big deal," Aubrey muttered, pretending to be suddenly engrossed with her Charms homework.  
  
"Oh, but Len-Isn't Marina Randalls going? With none other than your dear Midas?"  
  
That caught Aubrey's attention. "She and Midas-but what about-"  
  
"Tilly Motser? She and Midas decided to just be friends. Something about him liking another girl. Must have been Marina," Lenny said jokingly, freezing when he saw the look on his friend's face. "You really like him, don't you?" he asked, frowning a bit.  
  
Aubrey shrugged. "Who knows?" But the lovelorn look on her face said differently.  
  
"Gosh, Brey-I'm sorry," Kevin said, and he looked very sympathetic, as did Lenny. Just then the answer to their problems arrived.  
  
"Hey, Aubrey-got a minute?" It was Devin Norfolk-a fourth year Gryffindor like Midas and on the quidditch team as well, as a chaser. He wasn't the best of the lot-with freckles, dark hair, and a goofy smile that made him seem eight years younger than her really was-but he was one thing many of the boys of his year weren't: romantic. And that alone attracted the ladies.  
  
"Sure, Devin. Need something?" Aubrey asked.  
  
"Well, I'm what some might call sick," Devin said.  
  
"Sick? Really? What with?" Aubrey asked.  
  
"Well," Devin said, and by now the whole common room was watching, "for a while now I've been thinking about one.thing, and feeling all giddy.and sometimes I feel hot all over."  
  
Aubrey had cocked her head. She didn't know Devin well, but he had always been nice to her and she didn't want him to be ill. "Well, why do you think I might be able to help you?"  
  
"Because," Devin said, "you're the antidote." And then he kissed her, in front of the whole common room, Midas and Whitney included. When he pulled away Devin got down on one knee, grinned, and produced a rose out of thin air.  
  
"Aubrey Potter, will you be my date to the Yule Ball?" he asked, kissing her hand and handing her the rose. Aubrey felt a flutter in her stomach. How could she say no?  
  
"Alright, Devin," she said, and she giggled a bit as Toni and Jessica began to make kissing noises. For a moment her eyes strayed to Midas. He was sitting at a table, with Morgan and Thomas, and the look on his face took her breath away.  
  
Midas looked more sour than a lemon and angrier than any storm Aubrey had ever seen. It was almost frightening, the way he was looking at her and Devin, as if they were horrid scoundrels. Sighing, Aubrey turned away. Midas could have Marina; she had her Devin. 


	17. Curious

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter. He and his friends belong to J.K. Rowling and Warner Bros.  
  
The Gryffindor first years were divided into groups. The exclusiveness of each group was so tight that some teachers even called the cliques gangs. There was the first clique made up of all girls, Olivia Cunnings, Sarah Grant, and Imogene Oztarse. Then there was the all boys group consisting of Henry Johnson and Neil Pazell, both of which hung out with Whitney Snape and Joyelle Tyson quite often. The last and probably most well known clique throughout the halls of Hogwarts was Aubrey Potter, Jessica Weasley, Toni Luztgov, Kevin Malfoy, Angel Jordan, Lenny Bolewick, and Corey Killoney.  
  
Hardly anyone remembered Tina Figg, not even Joyelle, whose bed was right beside Tina's. Then again, Tina's specialty was not being noticed. She was muggle born and at her old school she had been invisible to everyone. She missed her mother and her younger brother terribly and often spent her time in her four- poster bed, the curtains drawn tightly around her private little enclosure. There she drew and dreamed, her two most favorite things to do. But sometimes drawing and dreamy were very lonely.  
  
One day Tina was busy sketching the venomous Severus Snape. Despite his bitter attitude and cruel demeanor, he was one of Tina's favorite people to draw. His face had so many different sour expressions and sharp angles that Tina sometimes snuck into the dungeons in her free period and crouched in the corner, watching him pace up and down the rows of cauldrons, striking fear into the heart's of students. She was just finishing a sketch of Snape hissing at a frightened third year Hufflepuff when the curtains to her bed were thrown open.  
  
Tina gave a small yelp of surprise and leapt back onto her pillows, throwing her sketchbook into the air in the process. Standing at the right side of her bed was Toni Luztgov, the girl on the other side of her bed. Toni's curious look turned to alarm.  
  
"Goodness!" she cried in an apologetic manner. "I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to frighten you! I mean, I came up here to change and I saw that the curtains to your bed were closed and I wanted to know who slept here."  
  
Tina had drawn secret portraits of Toni from across the common room. Her favorite part of drawing Toni was always coloring her in. Toni had honey blonde hair, gray-green eyes, and, whenever possible, she dressed in bright and colorful muggle clothing.  
  
"You're name's Tina, right?" Toni asked after a long uncomfortable silence. "I see you sketching a lot in the common room. Brey, Jess, and I always wonder who or what you like to draw." Tina blushed. So three of the most talked about girls in her year talked about her sketches.but at least they knew she existed. Finally Tina plucked up the courage to speak.  
  
"Well, I sketch people, mostly," she said somewhat meekly.  
  
"People?" Toni asked, quirking her eyebrow a bit and putting her hands on her hips.  
  
Trying to shake off the feeling of being interrogated, Tina answered back, "Yeah, just people around school."  
  
Toni nodded and suddenly her eyes fell on Tina's sketchbook, which lay open to the barely finished sketch of their Potions professor. Her expression went from penetrating to interested within seconds. Before Tina could stop her, Toni's hand had shot out and grabbed the book. Her eyes scanned the picture, focusing first in the angry face of Snape and then on the frightened look on the young student's face.  
  
"Wow!" she said quietly. "You've got talent. It's almost as if you've captures a piece of Snape himself." She paused a moment. "Bloody hell.I'm almost afraid he's going to jump out and yell at me!" She burst out laughing and flipped a few pages back, to a finished and colored drawing of Whitney Snape and Joyelle Tyson. After studying that picture Toni handed the sketchbook back to its owner and asked, "Want to come to dinner with me? I mean, you can tell us about your drawing and meet my friends in the process."  
  
Toni paused again. "You know Aubrey and Jessica, right?"  
  
Tina shrugged, nodded, and stood up. "Who doesn't?"  
  
And just like that, Tina Figg found herself some friends.  
  
***  
  
Morgan Morris was sitting in the library when they came in. Toni, Jessica, and the newest addition to the group, Tina strolled in and plopped down at a table not far from Morgan's. Aubrey, for some reason, was not with them. All three girls were giggling quietly to themselves and in Tina's hand the sketchbook she took everywhere. Morgan knew that Midas had once seen a sketch of Tina's in the common room, of Aubrey. Secretly he had taken it for himself and it was now at the bottom of his school trunk. Sometimes Morgan worried about his friend.  
  
With growing curiosity, Morgan crept behind a bookshelf and tiptoed quickly to the place right behind the table at which the three girls were seated. Maybe they would talk about Aubrey- it would cheer Midas up to hear about his dream girl. Straining his ears, Morgan tried to listen in on the conversation. There had to be some reason that Aubrey-who Whitney had said was obviously their leader-wasn't present. It wasn't long until Morgan was rewarded with the answer.  
  
"So, girls, how are we going to do this?" That was Toni. Morgan sighed wistfully. Just like Midas liked Aubrey, he liked Toni.the sweet, sassy, unpredictable thing she was. She had her arms crossed and was wearing a most business like manner. "I mean, I really like Devin, but we all know there are better men out there for our girl." Morgan couldn't help but raise an eyebrow. So they were trying to set up Aubrey. But with whom? That was something his friend would surely want to know.  
  
"But she'll never really say that she likes him. I mean, all Kevin said was that she acted all weird when she heard he had a date to the Yule Ball," Tina countered. Morgan's eyebrows shot up. So Aubrey liked a boy other than Devin. Wasn't that interesting?  
  
Jessica snorted. "Well, I know my cousin real well, and I know that she's got it bad for him. But she also won't admit it or make a move towards him. Go figure.I mean, everyone can see how hung up on her he is."  
  
"I know," Tina said, giggling. "Boy, does Angel have it bad! Poor guy.I think they'd be real cute together." Morgan's curiosity deepened. The only Angel he knew of was Angel Jordan, one of Aubrey's best friends. A boy that she had known since birth. Did they mean him?  
  
As if an answer to his question, Jessica said, "Mrs. Angel Jordan.Aubrey Potter-Jordan.Aubrey Jordan-Potter.Aubrey Jordan." Morgan almost snorted with amusement. That loudmouth of a little kid liked Aubrey? Midas would certainly be interested that.  
  
"Yeah, well.Kevin said that Angel talks about her in his sleep!" Tina whispered. All three girls began to giggle. Morgan, believing that he now knew enough, crept off towards the library door, intent on finding Midas.  
  
***  
  
Tina watched Morgan leave out of the corner of her eye. "Good. He was listening to every word we said," she whispered to Toni and Jessica.  
  
"Wonderful," Jessica whispered. "You were brilliant for figuring this out Toni."  
  
Toni grinned. "Yeah, well, I figure that he'll be running strait to Midas with that information. Now that boy has not one but two competitors for Aubrey! He'll have to make his move!"  
  
"But poor Angel.Are you sure he won't mind if we use his name for this?" Tina asked. "I mean, Midas might get a little.violent." But the smiles on the faces of her friends had disappeared.  
  
"You mean you didn't ask him?" Jessica asked, the panic in her voice barely contained.  
  
"Toni said to use his name!" Tina cried. All eyes focused on Toni.  
  
"Well, I was just using an example.Besides, Jess, didn't you say that those two kisses once?" Toni shot Jessica a look.  
  
"Well, they're nothing more than friends!" Jessica snapped, frowning. "I mean, we've known each other forever.Those two would never go out! For heaven's sake, they were born only an hour apart!"  
  
"Well then," Toni said, grinning, "this'll prove to be very interesting!" 


	18. Irritated

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or anything from his universe. He belongs to J.K. Rowling.  
  
A/N: Sorry that it took so long posting this! I'll try to be quicker next time!  
  
  
  
Sometimes it was a real drag, having Midas for an older brother. Like when he'd bully his friends into taking you to a dance. Especially when those friends had never outgrown the age of five. Honestly, Justine had no idea why Midas put up with Thomas Philbrin. The boy had the IQ of a gnome and was more irritating than just about anything Justine had ever encountered. Whitney had wanted to go with Morgan Morris but their father had vetoed the idea.  
  
"You're far too young to be going to the Yule Ball. If girls like Toni Luztgov and Aubrey Potter want to go then that's their business," he had snapped.  
  
Frankly Justine was glad that her sister hadn't gone with Morgan. Whitney would have been mortally embarrassed by her date's dance moves and social etiquette. And she would have spent to entire night glaring at Aubrey Potter, the center of the Gryffindor universe.  
  
Really, Justine rather liked the small redhead. It was her brother's own fault that he couldn't work up the courage to tell her he was crazy about her. However, when the family resentment towards Aubrey had set in, Aubrey had mistaken Justine's inquisitive looks for ones of disapproval and now shied away from her in the hallways. And besides, Justine wasn't in Ravenclaw for nothing. It was apparent in every little look Aubrey shot Midas that she fancied him just as much as he did her, if not more so.  
  
At the moment Aubrey was giggling with her sidekick, Toni Luztgov. Jessica Weasley and Tina Figg had both-according to Morgan-slipped out of the common room earlier that evening, before everyone left, with Angel Jordan at their sides. Devin Norfolk was getting punch and Toni's date-Devin's friend Richie-was busy stuffing his face. Every now and then Aubrey glanced shyly over at Midas, who was deeply engrossed in a conversation with Thomas.  
  
Finally Aubrey shrugged, somewhat irritated that Midas hadn't noticed her, and turned to Devin. She bent over and placed her lips right by his ear and whispered something. Devin smiled, nodded, and stood, extending his hand to her. Aubrey curtsied gracefully and placed her delicate in his. With graceful steps the two walked swiftly to the dance floor. Their dance was slow, and Aubrey sometimes tripped over the hem of her olive colored dress robe, but it was clear that Midas, for one, was pleased.  
  
He was swaying slightly to the beat and finally he turned back to Thomas. The two resumed their conversation, but, before much else could happen a shrill cry echoed throughout the Great Hall, and all the music stopped. Amongst wild wails and frightened whimpers a tall group of small, battered children ran in. Their leader was a scrawny, small boy with a head of wild black hair and big brown eyes. When Aubrey saw him she gave a wild shriek.  
  
"Siri!" she cried, racing to him. The small boy burst into tears, as did the other children who were not already crying, and they all ran to Aubrey. Prof. Dumbledore was striding across the Great Hall now, and Prof. McGonagall ran to one small girl and swept her into a tight embrace.  
  
"My little Iris," she whispered, smoothing the little girl's unruly dark hair down. "My little Iris."  
  
Aubrey turned to Dumbledore. "What does this mean?" she asked in a frightened voice. "Why are they all here?"  
  
McGonagall nodded. "Why is Sirius the oldest child present? And where's my husband and other daughters?" The usual commanding tone was gone from her voice replaced by a frightened waver. "Albus, what's happened?"  
  
All over the Great Hall the students had burst into excited whispers. Not many of them knew that McGonagall was married, much less with children! And just who were these children? How did they manage to come to Hogwarts?  
  
Dumbledore let out a deep sigh. "Aubrey," he asked softly, "who celebrates Christmas at your house?"  
  
Aubrey straitened up, a small toddler clutched tightly to her chest. "Well, the Commander always stops by-and sometimes Prof. McGonagall is with him. All my relatives come-but this year Uncle Bill and Uncle Charlie were going to celebrate the holidays with their wives' families. Then the Jordans and the Malfoys come over, as well as the Blacks and the Lupins. And that's about it."  
  
Dumbledore nodded sadly. Turning to Justine's father, who had rushed over to the scene with all the other professors, he asked, "Severus, might you lend me Midas and Justine for the evening? Ms. Potter will have enough on her hands with one, two-fifteen children, and I think it would be best if she had a little help."  
  
"Of course, Headmaster," Severus said before signaling his children over. "You heard the man! Help Ms. Potter and the children to his office! I trust that you have the general idea of how to handle your siblings?" he asked Aubrey.  
  
"Only two of them are my siblings, sir," Aubrey whispered, and tears welled up in her eyes. "But I've watched over my cousins a lot. Can Toni come with me?" Dumbledore nodded and Toni rushed over and scooped up the smallest child.  
  
"Hey, kiddo," she whispered. "From Aubrey's vivid descriptions I'd have to say that you were.let's see.Remus? Her little brother?"  
  
Despite himself the small boy-Remus-smiled. "Yeah," he said, and Aubrey gave her thumbs up.  
  
"And Mr. Morris!" Dumbledore called, motioning for Morgan. "Why don't you and Mr. Norfolk go and find Ms. Weasley along with Mr. Malfoy and Mr. Jordan." He turned to the rest of the Great Hall. "As for all of you," he said, "please continue on. I'll leave Madame Hooch and Professor Vector in charge." With a quick nod Dumbledore dispensed everyone for their various duties. 


	19. Corcern

12:12 AM, December 26, 2009  
  
  
  
Aubrey hadn't said a word since she, Toni, Midas, and Justine had left the Great Hall over an hour ago. The little ones-all fifteen of them-had been so exhausted that they hadn't been much for troubLumaking. They barely noticed the moving portraits which were, by now, buzzing with excitement about the turn up of these seemingly abandoned children. When they reached Dumbledore's office the gargoyle guarding the entrance, which seemed to expect their arrival, swiveled down to reveal a staircase without need of a password. Tiredly and without complaint the children trooped up the staircase and into the oval office. One or two of them perked up upon seeing all the whirling magical gadgets, but for the most part they climbed into the fifteen pairs of pajamas that had been laid out and climbed into the small cots that were scattered around the office.  
  
Most of Dumbledore's furniture had been removed from his office, but a scarlet half-circle couch remained up against one of the oval walls. Aubrey had slumped on it and staid like that for a long time. She looked so miserable and desolate that only Toni dared to venture over and comfort the small redhead, utmost concern written on her face. Aubrey rested her head on Toni's shoulder and Midas had slunk over to a corner, followed closely by Justine. The two siblings had watched the two friends until the silence had grown to a breaking point.  
  
"So, who are these kids?" Midas asked. Toni shot up, glaring at Midas, but Aubrey held up a hand to stop her friend from laying in to the Gryffindor fourth year.  
  
She smiled a little before pointing to a small girl lying on the cot nearest to her, sleeping peacefully in a bright pink sleeping bag. Midas recognized the little girl as the one McGonagall had picked up in the Great Hall. "This is Iris McGonagall-Brinks. She's Prof. McGonagall's youngest daughter."  
  
"McGonagall has a daughter?" Midas asked, an amazed look on his face.  
  
"Three," Aubrey corrected. "Atlanta and Calypso, well.Who knows where they are. Their dad and my dad fought in the war together. Their dad was my dad's commander." Midas nodded and Aubrey continued, pointing next to the scrawny boy who had led the children into Hogwarts, the one Aubrey had called Sirius. "This little guy is my baby brother, Sirius, named after my dad's godfather, Sirius Black. The fellow beside him," Aubrey pointed to the little boy called Remus, "is my other little brother present. His name is Remus, after my dad's good, good friend and my grandfather's best friend, Remus Lupin. That sweet little thing beside little Remus is my cousin, Luna. She belongs to my uncle Fred-his youngest child. Beside her is her big sister, Gina, and our cousin Tommy. You all with me so far?"  
  
Aubrey looked up from her child tally and received four nods. "Alright, then. Next comes Terrance Malfoy, Kevin's little brother, and then Olivia, Angel's little sister. Then comes two more Malfoys-Fiona and Roderick-and after them is another of my cousins, Kimberly. Then comes two of Jessica's little siblings, Luther and Joey. And then, lastly, there's Romulus Lupin and Mandy Black. And that's the lot of them." Aubrey smiled sadly. "Fifteen kids," she muttered. "That means that there's.let's see.thirty-five children missing."  
  
Justine gasped in horror and Midas covered his mouth. Thirty-five children missing? He had known that the Potters generally had a lot of friends, but thirty-five children unaccounted for? That was horrible!  
  
"What will you do?" Midas asked.  
  
Aubrey could only shrug. "Well, my uncles Charlie and Bill weren't with us this Christmas so we should have a place to stay if." She trailed off but the unsaid words still hung ominously in the air.  
  
"So we should have a place to stay if my parents are dead."  
  
Aubrey was suddenly very interested in the material that the couch was made out of. She picked absentmindedly at the fabric and hummed a soft tune. After a few minutes had gone by Aubrey went very still. "They should have been here by now," she whispered, though, with the silence of the room, everyone heard.  
  
"Aubrey?" Justine asked. "Are you feeling all right?"  
  
But Aubrey wasn't listening. She was extremely pale and her hands had begun to shake. "They should have been here by now!" she cried, waking Luther and Iris. "Oh, Merlin! Where are all of them? Honestly-They were just going to go set something up for a prank out by the lake but it shouldn't have taken them this long!" Luther began to cry softly and Justine swooped down to pick him up and cuddle him while Aubrey talked to herself, a mad look in her eyes. "Something's wrong, Toni. I can feel it-see it!-but something's terribly wrong."  
  
Toni looked wildly at Midas and Justine, pleading silently for help with her distressed friend. "Brey," she said in a soothing voice, but Aubrey cut her off.  
  
"Where are Jessica, Angel, and Kevin? They should have been here by now! Oh, Toni, I think something big and horrid is going on right under our noses!"  
  
***  
  
12:15 AM, December 26, 2009  
  
  
  
"What do you mean, no remains were found?" McGonagall sounded near hysterical. "What about my daughters and my husband?"  
  
"I'm sorry, ma'am," the young Ministry official said, looking highly uncomfortable, "but we couldn't find any human remains. The house was totally demolished-some flattened it into the ground. No bodies were found, living or otherwise."  
  
McGonagall began to sob loud, heart-wrenching sobs of despair, and she flew flung herself on Snape. The Ministry official looked at Dumbledore, who nodded to young man. "Please, go and fetch the Minister of Magic again. I'd like another word with her," he said. The young man nodded and left posthaste, looking all too happy to get out of the office that Dumbledore, McGonagall, and Snape had been waiting in for the past two hours.  
  
Right after dispensing everyone to their own their duties at the ball, Dumbledore, McGonagall, and Snape had all taken one of the school's carriages down to Hogsmeade, where they had apparated to the Ministry of Magic headquarters. After being told to wait for an hour the three Hogwarts professors had been shown into the office of the Minister of Magic, Jaclyn Hall. Just two years ago Cornelius Fudge had suffered a major heart attack and had died within the month. After a panic filled week of trying to find a replacement for Fudge Jaclyn Hall had surfaced. Young-only twenty-seven at the time-female, and too pretty to be taken seriously, many had thought Hall to be a horrible mistake, but Albus Dumbledore and Harry Potter had pushed for her to be put into office, and so far no one had been disappointed.  
  
The moment Hall had entered her office Dumbledore could tell that she knew about the Potters. She was pale, and though she had not shed any tears her eyes held a deep sadness. She had only had time to stay and talk for a few moments-she had to go to the scene of the Potter's home again-she had hugged McGonagall, expressed her concerns to Dumbledore, and nodded at Snape. They had waited in Hall's office for another hour before Hall's personal secretary came and herded them all into another office just down the hall and promising that someone would be with them 'very soon.' Ten minutes later the Ministry official had shown up.  
  
"What could have happened to the bodies, Albus?" McGonagall asked, gripping her head and making an effort to stop crying. "Might they still be alive?" She looked to the Headmaster of Hogwarts, but he, for once, couldn't meet her eyes.  
  
"I'm not sure, Minerva. I need to know more information before I can truly say. Ah! Ms. Hall!" Dumbledore stood to greet the Minister of Magic, though his extended hand was not shaken.  
  
"Oh, Prof. Dumbledore! My secretary told me you were still here. I would have thought that you'd have gone back to Hogwarts and awaited further information." Hall smiled lightly, but both her voice and her smile were laced with venom. "Don't you want to get back to your students?" Her suggestion was obviously a command, or at least a blatant wish.  
  
"I will," Dumbledore assured Hall, "as soon as we talk. I'd like to ask a few questions, if you don't mind."  
  
Hall's eyes widened only slightly and she cast a cool glance at McGonagall and Snape. "Whatever you want," she said, motioning to the door. "My office is free. Let's go."  
  
Dumbledore and Hall swept out of the office, murmuring to each other in hushed voices, and leaving McGonagall and Snape alone. Dumbledore and Hall had only been gone a few minutes before McGonagall began to speak, though she sounded dazed and she wasn't looking directly at Snape. "Keith was my world, you know. We met at the Potter's wedding, and he asked me to dance.You remember, don't you? Oh, he was always so sweet, so loving.And then I got pregnant, even though I was so old.Keith couldn't have been happier the day I told him."  
  
Snape nodded. He had never really met Keith Brinks-he had not attended the wedding-and McGonagall had never mentioned him, so he had always wondered what the man was like. McGonagall was silent after her speech about her husband, and she stared vacantly into space, her eyes glazed over, as if to block out the pain. It had been twenty minutes or so when the door to the office flew open again and Dumbledore rushed back in, a letter clutched in his hand and Hall trialing after him.  
  
"Quickly, Severus!" Dumbledore cried, his eyes filled with a wild terror. "Something's gone wrong! Some first and forth year children have gone missing!" Dumbledore paused and locked eyes with the Potions Master. "One of the first years was Whitney. I'm sorry, Severus, but Whitney has disappeared."  
  
***  
  
12:34 AM, December 26th, 2009  
  
  
  
It was all Kevin's fault.  
  
Jessica may not have known who had hit her over the head, or who had stashed her in this cave, or even where she was, but she did know that it was Kevin's fault that she was here. After all, hadn't it been his idea to pull a prank and make their mark? Hadn't it been his idea to send Angel and her outside that night to gather the necessary materials from Hagrid's hut? It just figured that a Malfoy would send someone else to do a dangerous job, or at least that's what her father muttered whenever he was upset with Draco.  
  
It was pitch black in the room Jessica was in and she had only just woken up but already she had been able to discern three things. The first was that she was not alone. She had been bound magically to someone else. The second thing she could tell was that she was tied to Thomas Philbrin. She could smell his cheesy cologne over the strong scent of mildew, which she betrayed that they were most likely being kept in a basement. Jessica had always been smart, just like her mother. She knew exactly how to analyze and overall determine who had kidnapped her and how to escape.  
  
The last thing she remembered was striding towards Hagrid's hut, listening to Angel ramble on about how great their prank was going to be and how the second generation of the Marauders would be known all throughout Hogwarts. Actually, they weren't going to call themselves the Marauders-they would be forever known as the Raiders-but it was the same sort of thing. And really, the prank wasn't that brilliant, but it was all they had been able to come up with, and it was sure to make the Slytherins seethe with anger.  
  
All they needed do was get the house-elves to pour a new invention Jessica's uncles' into the drinks of every Slytherin present and a few others that had gotten on the newly christened Raiders' nerves (namely Toni's exes). The liquid, which was only activated when added to wizarding drinks such as butterbeer, was meant to turn its drinker's skin and hair different colors. Jessica had written her uncle George for a whole boxful of the liquid packets, and they had been owled to Hagrid's hut, so as not to be discovered by Whitney or Joyelle, both of whom were starting to get suspicious. Kevin and Tina were lurking outside the entrance to the Hogwarts kitchens, and Aubrey and Toni were inside the ball, jotting down the positions of all the Slytherins to slip to the house-elves. Now all they needed to do was to obtain the package and they'd be set.  
  
Suddenly, though, Jessica had stopped dead. Angel noticed that and turned around. "Jess, what's the matter? Are you-Ah!" He jumped back in surprise and horror.  
  
Jessica's deep brown eyes had rolled up in her head so that her irises had disappeared. Her skin had gone almost as white the snow around her arms were crossed over her chest in the shape of an 'X'. She looked bloody terrifying, and Angel subdued his extinct to turn on his heel and run.  
  
"Innocent blood has been spilled tonight. Children's blood has been spilled tonight. Much more blood will be spilled tonight, starting with yours."  
  
It took Angel few moments to realize that the voice that had just spoken belonged to Jessica. Her voice had been deep, eerie, and it had chilled his blood. And then there was what she had said.That his blood would be spilled? Jessica had let out a terrified scream when a tall man sheathed in black garb stepped out from behind a tree. He had been carrying what her mother had once told her was a gun and his face was covered in an intricate mask, also black. The only piece of color in his whole ensemble was a large red insignia directly over his heart.  
  
The only thing that the mask had showed was the man's eyes. They were golden and beautifully so. Large and almond shaped the man's eyes were a deep golden, flecked with leafy green and amber brown. They were piercing, and like a wolf's eyes in that they were feral and hungry. Jessica felt herself returning to normal and watched in horror as the man raised his gun and pointed it at Angel. Without any visible emotion betrayed in the man's eyes he pulled the trigger. Jessica screamed as Angel's body hit the ground, red blood staining the snow around him.  
  
The man looked up at Jessica. "It would be a shame to harm a pretty one like you," he said, and his voice was just as feral as his eyes were. "I'll just have you to knock you out another way." Jessica just barely remembered the man reaching towards her, his gun raised up high. And now she was waking in this room. And what did Thomas Philbrin have to do with any of this? So many things about the past night seemed hazy.But she knew one thing.It was all Kevin's fault.  
  
***  
  
1:30 AM, December 26th, 2009  
  
  
  
Lumaren Kaverne hated the world, and the world hated her. Maybe the only thing she didn't hate was her twin brother, Leonard, but even then she didn't love him. Lumaren had once been pure, sweet, kind, the youngest of five children. Her family had been poor and simple, but they had been happy and that had filled Lumaren-then she was just plain Luma Kaver-with a peaceful satisfaction. Luma had been only twelve when Voldemort had taken his second rise. She had been so innocent and naive then that she had believed that his wrath would completely pass over her small, remote wizarding village, filled mostly with squibs and muggle-borns. Luma's family was one of the only three pureblood families living there.  
  
One day, when Luma was just fifteen, she and her twin Leonard-they had been very close then-had gone berry harvesting in the woods surrounding their village. They had left in the morning, when the sun was barely up, but near noon Leonard had looked up to see smoke billowing in curls over the treetops. With panic rising in their chests the two teenagers had run through the woods and back to their village. The scene they found was one Luma would never forget. The village had been utterly and completely flattened; all the houses had been destroyed and there was no sign of any life. Luma's eyes had flown to the sky where the Dark Mark had burned bright. The panic in her stomach turned to despair. Luma fell to the ground in misery, and Leonard gazed at her with concern. The two twins hadn't noticed the tall, handsome, pale man striding towards them until he spoke.  
  
"You're even prettier in real life than in my dreams," the man said, and though the words might have been sweet and romantic the untamed look of lustful ferocity in his eyes destroyed any sentimentality. Luma had gasped and scuffled away from the man. Though he was handsome, terribly so, all his beauty was of a dangerous sort, the kind that made your knees weak and your blood run cold at the same time. Hair black as midnight, eyes as green and perilous as anything, lips chiseled by the hands of the gods, and a perfect, slender nose. The man saw her gaze and grinned roguishly. "So my little charm worked," he had murmured. "I shall reward Nott very generously for creating this charm."  
  
"Charm?" Leonard had asked, and Luma had heard disgust in his voice. "What are you? Who are you?"  
  
The man had ignored Leonard's questions and bent down to Luma. "For the past two years you have haunted my dreams, Luma Renée Kaver, and I do mean haunt. I have searched the world twice over to find you, Luma, and now that I've found you there's no chance in hell I'll let you go. You can come with me willingly, Luma, and see me as a god, or I can force you to come and you can see me as a demon."  
  
Luma had been frightened of course, but at the same time she had been enchanted. "Come where?" she asked. "Where do you want me to come?"  
  
The man had smiled. "With me, Luma, with me. I'm a powerful man with a growing empire. I need an heir, and you're the only woman who can give me a strong enough one."  
  
"But who are you? Do you work with You-Know-Who?"  
  
This time the man had paid attention to Leonard's question. "Voldemort?" he had asked, causing both Leonard and Luma to start. "Voldemort is my past, present, and future. Voldemort is anything and everything I have ever done or ever will do for I am Voldemort."  
  
The next two years had been like a blurry dream for Luma. She left with Voldemort-he always told her to call him Tom-and Leonard went with them. Luma lengthened her name to Lumaren Kavern while Leonard shortened his name to Leo Kav. Lumaren forgot being poor, pure, and sweet and began to exist only for her new husband, Tom. She never saw 'Tom' as he really was, only as she wanted to. She never understood the disgusted looks Leo sent 'Tom's' way. Lumaren was pregnant with a baby boy eight months after meeting 'Tom' and they named the boy Serpens. Two months later Lumaren was pregnant again, this time with a girl, but Voldemort was killed by the Potter brat two months before Angelina was born.  
  
The story Lumaren always told her children was that one. She didn't mention their father's violent side, or his many hookers, or even the incredible hate she had felt towards the Potter brat for killing her most beloved. Despite whatever 'Tom'-Voldemort-had done, she had loved him, and losing him had almost killed her. She had thrown every atom of her being into planning the Potters' destruction, and it had cost her everything: eleven years of her life, her twin brother's love, her children's admiration.But now she was ready.And now her plan was in motion. Leo, of course, had aided her-he always did-and though the plan would take the next five years to really pick up, but it was in motion.And then there would be all hell to pay. 


End file.
